Kriti Sanon walked away from the Zee Cine Awards with the Best Actress trophy for Tere Ishk Mein. Within days, a single Instagram like from Yami Gautam turned that moment into a full-blown controversy. The internet noticed. Reddit had opinions. And now, both fanbases are at war.
The Like That Started Everything
An Instagram reel began circulating after the awards, and it was designed to provoke. It opened with a clip of Kriti celebrating her Best Actress win, then cut to a clip of Yami from a THR India interview saying, “You try everything, and it still doesn’t work. So, I’ve stopped seeking any kind of validation.”
The reel ended with the question: “Is it fair?” — implying Yami deserved the award over Kriti. Yami’s fans had already been making that argument online. However, what escalated the situation was that Yami herself liked the reel.
Reddit Calls It Out Immediately
A Reddit user posted a screengrab of Yami’s like, and the thread exploded almost immediately. Several users questioned her conduct directly. “Ewww why’s she dragging Kriti when all Kriti does is mind her business,” wrote one commenter.
Another called it a pattern rather than a one-off moment. “How insecure is Yami? She has always been shading others openly,” the comment read. A third user pushed back on the premise entirely, noting that Article 370 — Yami’s most critically praised recent work — was “neither some great movie nor her performance was outstanding or anything.”
The Contradiction Nobody Is Ignoring
This is where the story gets more interesting than a simple fan war. Yami’s own words, used in the reel she liked, state that she has stopped seeking validation from awards. Therefore, liking a reel that questions whether another actress deserved an award over her cuts directly against that position.
It is a small digital action with a large implication. Celebrities are rarely careless with their likes on controversial content. Consequently, the Reddit community read this as deliberate — a quiet signal of displeasure dressed up as passive engagement.
Not Everyone Sided Against Yami
To be fair, the response was not unanimous. Some Redditors acknowledged that both actresses delivered strong performances. “Why so much hate on Kriti winning? Both are deserving,” one user wrote. Others, including a self-identified Kriti fan, admitted Yami was outstanding in Haq, while also arguing Kriti was better in Do Patti than in Tere Ishk Mein.
Kangana Ranaut’s name also surfaced in the comments, with some fans arguing her performance in Emergency deserved consideration. Awards conversations in Bollywood rarely stay contained, and this thread was no different.
Kriti Sanon Stays Above the Noise
Meanwhile, Kriti remained entirely unbothered — at least publicly. She posted warmly on social media after her win, writing, “Mukti has my heart, and it’s a little more Gold now.” She thanked director Aanand L Rai and co-star Dhanush, and closed with a heartfelt note to audiences.
There was no reference to the online noise, no sub-tweeting, no engagement with the controversy. Sometimes, the loudest response is silence — and in this case, it has only made Kriti look better.
