Karan Johar: “Indian cinema is a beast of its own”

Filmmaker Karan Johar was invited to the ISB Leadership Summit held in Hyderabad to discuss the future of Indian cinema. During the talk, Johar spoke about the challenges faced by the industry and the growth he wishes to see.

Johar highlighted that Indian cinema goes beyond Bollywood, and regional segregation of the industry needs to stop. He emphasized that projecting a unified front internationally can improve the image of the Indian film industry. “Bollywood is a term we have learnt to live with. It is disheartening that you have to keep using it in the world because that is our identity. We are not poor cousin of any industry. We are tall industry of our own and we have made some spectacular movies.”

He stated that going beyond these regional barriers needs to start on a domestic scale. According to him, more films need to strive for the universal appeal ‘Baahubali’ (2015) has managed to achieve all over India.

Johar feels that Indian cinema is currently going through a dark tunnel, The Indian Express reported. In order to grow, he believes it is important to embrace what makes the industry unique. “Indian cinema is a beast of its own. It’s not like anything that you sell off the counter or any other product this country sells. We are part of this beast and victims of it, at times. If you don’t love that beast, don’t own that beast and don’t completely and passionately be absorbed by that, you should not try and sell it.”, adding that “It’s a totally different ballgame and operates from totally different space. We have an unconventional and diverse audience.”

By Sahar Junejo