The Hindu : New Delhi News : `Showman' foresees a new Bollywood

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, May 22, 2006

New Delhi

New Delhi

`Showman' foresees a new Bollywood

Veteran film-maker Subhash Ghai shares his insight on the changing dynamics of the Hindi film industry with Madhur Tankha...

Even as Bollywood directors are increasingly banking on big stars for success of their films, there is one Hindi filmmaker who has a different take on this. Subhash Ghai foresees the emergence of a new breed of scriptwriters in the years ahead, who through their crisp, intelligent and imaginative writings will be delivering hits.

Stating that his latest blockbuster `36 China Town' has done commendable business despite criticism by an overwhelming number of film critics, Mr. Ghai says: "My film is doing rocking business. In fact, it has done two times more business than my earlier film `Aitraaz'. In the first week itself, the movie has generated Rs.11.50 crores across the country when its cost is Rs.12 crores. This amount does not include satellite, DVD and overseas rights. The sad part is that despite being an entertaining crime thriller, the film has not got due reviews. Many critics do not enjoy crime thrillers. We must understand that if people give a vote for success of the film this means that it has been well appreciated," says the producer-director.

Dismissing suggestions that he took Kareena Kapoor and Shahid Kapoor because of their off-screen chemistry, Mr. Ghai says he had earlier signed Kareena for `Yaadein' and `Aitraaz', while Shahid was a rising star who was also good in public relations.

On how his production house Mukta Arts Limited has managed to churn out films of different genres, the veteran film-maker says: "We are honest in our approach to filmmaking. If we have to make a commercial film then we go all out to make it. My earlier film `Iqbal' that got five star reviews by the critics was targeted towards the elite. A range of films from `Joggers Park' to `Iqbal' and `36 China Town' have been made. We choose a director according to the film's subject. I would not have chosen Abbas Mastan for `Iqbal' and Nagesh Kukunoor for `36 China Town'."

Informing that two more comedies "Apna Sapna Money, Money" and "Good Boy, Bad Boy" are also in the pipeline, the director says: "The first film directed by Sanjeeth Sivan has Celina Jaitley, Koena Mitra and Riya Sen as heroines, while the leading men include Ritesh Deshmukh, Shreyas Talpade and Sunil Shetty. `Good Boy, Bad Boy' is about college campus and stars Tusshar Kapoor and Emraan Hashmi."

Despite giving hits like `Saudagar', Mr. Ghai has not allowed success to go to his head. He is not only allowing young directors to make films under his banner but has also displayed a big heart in giving them due credit on appropriate occasions. After bagging a trophy for "Iqbal" at a film award function, he made it a point to call Kukunoor on to the stage. "It is the humbleness of a producer to give credit to creativity." Asked what were his inputs in the film, the filmmaker says that he selected the subject, approved the budget, script and the final cut.

Asserting that 90 per cent of Hindi films were flopping at the box office, Mr. Ghai says all filmmakers claim they have good stories yet their movies do miserably commercially because the journey from the script to editing and direction is not handled properly. "Of these films, 70 per cent are bad ones, while 20 are not being recognised. In animation, we have made only one `Hanuman', while in the West animation films are increasing by leaps and bounds," says he.

On the need to open Whistling Woods International in Mumbai for those interested in making a career in Bollywood, Mr. Ghai says after working in the industry for so many years, he wanted to offer a platform to talented people. "Why should only people from film industry work in Bollywood. After five years, you will see scriptwriters becoming highest paid professionals and become famous like the Salim-Javed duo. There is a pre-conceived notion that the director is the captain of a ship, he sports a cap like Subhash Ghai. This is stupid. Nowadays, Hindi songs have been reduced to video songs. Due to bad editing these songs have lost their earlier touch," he quips.

Stating that after giving more than a dozen flops at the box office any artiste can learn the craft of acting, Mr. Ghai says: "An actor needs to deliver a thorough professional performance in his very first film. Jaya Bachchan, Shabana Azmi and Naseeruddin Shah looked so good even during their initial films, while Jackie Shroff and Meenakshi Seshadari learnt from film to film."

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