Today, while speaking at NFDC Film Bazaar, Filmmaker Anurag Basu commented against his BFI colleague Rohit Shetty. He said films reflects the thinking and the thoughts of a director. He said that “according to me, Rohit Shetty can never make a female-centric movie like ‘Queen’, which was a sleeper hit.” This statement is going viral about the two directors.
Anurag Basu has an experience of making movies, Television advertisements and television directing, acting, screenwriting and producing. Speaking at “Female protagonists in Bollywood Today – How Real is the Discourse” program at the ongoing NFDC Film Bazaar, the “Barfi!” director said a director’s perception of women is often visible from the way he treats his heroine’s character in a film.
“Personalities of actors and directors reflect the kind of work they do. Anand (L Rai) can make ‘Tanu Weds Manu’, Vikas Bahl can do ‘Queen’. But someone like Rohit Shetty cannot do ‘Queen’. It depends upon the kind of person you are and the way you see women. For example, Salman says some dialogues which Shah Rukh will never say,” Basu said.
The director dismissed the discussion about the growing trend of women-oriented films being made in Bollywood, saying “it is still too soon to say that makers have become absolutely comfortable backing female-led projects.” “You should not judge the change in the scenario by just two or three films. You have to see in the coming years where we are headed and how people are taking it in and how many films are being made.”
Basu thinks more women directors and writers should make films that provide focus on the fairer sex. “Women-oriented films have always been made. The climax of ‘Queen’ and the ending of ‘Earth’ was same. I agree there was a slight gap. Women directors and writers should come up and portray them more in films,” he said.