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It's a Ghai thing, you know

Subhash Ghai, the maker of blockbusters, tells MINI ANTHIKAD-CHHIBBER it's time for him to take creative risks

PHOTO: MURALI KUMAR K.

SHOWMAN OF BOLLYWOOD Subhash Ghai

Subhash Ghai admits to there being three Ms in his life. "Not Madhuri, Manisha and Mahima," he chortles, referring to the divas he introduced to tinsel town. "The three Ms are machine, man and mind. A machine cannot create on its own; it needs the hand and the mind of man."

The immensely successful filmmaker, who recently inaugurated the Association of Bangalore Animation Industry Fest 2006 in Bangalore, spoke of the need for creative technicians. "That is the reason for opening Whistling Woods, (www.whistlingwoods.net) an international film school. We train people to successfully marry art and technique. These days, films are techno savvy but, in the process, content suffers. If you look at a dance on television today, you can see that the editor has taken over. You cannot see the dance for the lighting and sound. The poetry has been demolished; the soul is gone. Can you imagine going to a temple and looking at god in four cuts," asks Ghai.

That is not to say that the showman of Bollywood is totally against technology. His films are known for their lavishly mounted set pieces — who can forget Rishi Kapoor spinning around on a giant LP record in a song sequence in the reincarnation saga Karz?

"Of course, we must use technology to express ourselves. It is just a tool. You cannot expect content to follow technology. Today, there is creative masking. Making music and writing have software that at the click of a button creates a tune or writes a story. But the soul is missing. Technology creates as well as destroys. Look at piracy, for instance. It is technology that made piracy possible and we are using technology to curb it as well. It is all in the hands of the user."

Ask him if the era of the multi-starrer is over, and Ghai responds instantly: "Don't talk of eras. An era is 20 years, not a day! The media, which is under constant pressure to give something new, makes these labels. If one song is a hit, you have the media saying the musical is back or if a film flops then you have headlines screaming it is the end of cinema. Breaking news is a joke. Technology does not give media time to think; everything is instant. And these instant headlines, instant news, is killing journalism as well."

Ghai is of the impression that now is the time for literature-based cinema. "With the multiplexes, the audience is willing to experiment. They like either issue-based cinema or total time pass fun films." That is how a No Entry and Iqbal or a Sarkar and Black can run simultaneously.

His production house, Mukta Arts, which produced Iqbal, has the right instinct for picking out successful films. Remember Jogger's Park that introduced India's very own singleton in Jenny? "I wrote Jogger's Park and Nagesh Kukunoor came to me with four stories. I chose Iqbal and told him to develop it."

Ghai, who prefers directing to production, says: "We are releasing two films — Apna Sapna Money Money (November 10) and Good Boy, Bad Boy. On October 24, I will announce new projects, including my film."

Which brings us to the disaster called Kisna. "I knew right at the inception that this was a film that would succeed or fail spectacularly. I wanted to make a film about India between 1930 and 1947. But India has changed from then to now. After a trial show, a youngster came up to me and asked, `Why did the boy not go with the English girl? Why did he choose to remain in India in poverty?' When I heard that, I knew the film would not work, as youngsters were not able to relate to its basic premise. But mark my words, Kisna will prove to be a classic."

He chose to make a period film, as when one has encountered the kind of success he has, one has to take creative risks. "What is the point of making another Khal Nayak or Hero?"

That he is fiercely against remakes is obvious when he says: "It clearly shows people have stopped exploring new themes. They have stopped looking at society. They do not want to do research. Remakes and remixes are an easy way of making money. The trend discourages innovative people. I have my distributors asking me to remake my films. I have 50 new stories waiting to be made so why do something I have already done?"

Ghai, who studied acting at the Film and Television Training Institute (FTII), has made a habit of appearing in all his films. "It started off as a joke, then developed into a habit and now it is a flirtation with the audience. Like someone said they were looking out for me in Kisna and I said I appeared after the film was over!"

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