In a candid conversation, filmmaker Anurag Kashyap shares his deep admiration for Malayalam cinema while expressing concerns about the current state of Hindi film industry. He discusses his recent experience working in Malayalam cinema with 'Rifle Club', praising the collaborative spirit and creative freedom he encountered in Kerala. The director opens up about his unreleased film 'Kennedy', the challenges faced by independent filmmakers, and his disillusionment with the corporate influence in Bollywood.
Anurag reflects on his journey from creating a filmmaking community to his current desire to work in South Indian cinema. He speaks about the evolution of OTT platforms, the impact of social media on filmmaking, and why he believes Hindi cinema needs to hit rock bottom before it can rise again. The conversation provides an unfiltered look at the changing landscape of Indian cinema through the eyes of one of its most outspoken voices.
00:00 Introduction
00:50 Welcoming Anurag Kashyap
01:12 First impactful South Indian film and discussing the journey
05:01 Love showered by audience in Kerala
06:34 Audience and cinema clubs in South
08:50 “Rifle Club” as a fresh spin on classic tropes
10:48 Uniqueness of Malayalam cinema and camaraderie on a Malayalam film set
14:53 Shift of focus to being treated like a "star" in Hindi cinema and inflated costs
17:12 Corporate mindset in Hindi cinema on selling the movie
18:53 Agencies pushing “stardom” over performance in Hindi cinema
23:18 How Anurag landed “Rifle Club”
24:34 Evolution in Malayalam cinema vs Hindi cinema
26:48 OTT platforms, corporate fear, and the difficulty of making truly independent films
30:35 On five of his films remaining unreleased
31:51 South producers vs producers in Bollywood
33:43 On audience being ignored
39:10 Working with Rajeev Ravi
42:53 Comparing 15 years ago to now
45:50 Star system in Hindi cinema
47:49 Belief that Hindi cinema will hit rock bottom before it resets to better storytelling
48:56 Overwhelmed by too many shows/films available
52:42 Finding a personal rhythm for watching films at his own pace
53:44 Most enjoyable process in filmmaking and detaching emotionally from unreleased films
58:22 The downside of corporate investment in film culture
59:23 Why success can often be a poor teacher and on filmmakers perceiving to audience's tastes
01:02:50 On "All We Imagine As Light" and the Oscars
01:04:40 Rejecting the “mythology” built around him
01:09:00 Plans to do only projects he enjoys
01:10:14 On being disappointed
01:11:20 Closing remarks
#AnuragKashyap #IndianCinema #THRIndia #rifleclub