Bollywood’s reflexive rush to register movie titles after crises is a well-established pattern. The practice is so routine that when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and India went into lockdown in early 2020, industry bodies like the Indian Motion Picture Producers’ Association (IMPPA) saw a flurry of activity with filmmakers clamoring to register movie titles referencing the coronavirus (Kokra, 2020). Proposed titles ranged from the punning Corona Pyaar Hai to the ominous Deadly Corona, all filed “in the hopes that [these titles] would pique the audience’s interest enough to bring them flocking to the theatre” once cinemas reopened (Kokra, 2020). This behavior, widely criticized as emotional exploitation, is not new. Bollywood has repeatedly been accused of capitalizing on national trauma. The most infamous instance came after the November 2008 Mumbai terrorist attacks: mere days after 166 people were killed in the attacks, the Mumbai Chief Minister even escorted filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma through the ravaged Taj Mahal Hotel, prompting outrage at the seeming preparedness to dramatize the tragedy for screens (Ghoge & Mahajani, 2008). Each episode reinforces how swiftly Bollywood’s profit motive kicks in during moments of national mourning or triumph. A catchy title registered at the right moment can secure a producer’s monopoly over a hot narrative, essentially burying the bodies of victims beneath a spectacle of cinematic ambition.