I revere my serials. But the reality, at the same time, is that it is difficult to get a break in films. I have been unceremoniously ousted from 20-25 films because I am a serial actor.
I never thought I will ever get back into films when I took that break. ‘English Vinglish’ just happened.
That’s the beauty of short films; their strength lies in delivering a message creatively and simply.
My dream is to one day own a country house on the shore in England, have gotten married, wipe some debt off and get a few more good films.
For me, my films are not like my children. They are like my ex-wife. They gave me so much; I gave them so much; I loved them so much; we part ways, and it’s OK, we part ways.
Indians can identify with the Indian sensibilities, and rather than taking something from foreign films, it is always good to make a movie which has been enjoyed by a certain audience or in a certain part of India and make it available to a larger audience.
The best films of any kind, narrative or documentary, provoke questions.
I grew up watching his movies; I know everyone did, but I really feel that a lot of my formative years were informed by Woody Allen films.
I want to do films and have my name mentioned next to Wes Anderson and Quentin Tarantino. I don’t want my name mentioned next to other rappers at all.
Such films that the audiences remembers 10-15 years after they released come by rarely.
Indigenous people in films, it’s all, like, nose flutes and panpipes and, you know, people talking to ghosts… which I hate.
I don’t really look like people in films; I look like people in paintings.
A lot of new dads don’t realise that you can’t take your 5-year-old along to see something like ‘The Avengers.’ Modern superhero films are too violent, and the dialogue is far too convoluted for a child.
My films are personal-voice-driven films about human characters and the place we live. Technically, I’m an independent filmmaker.
I think documentary filmmaking is a braver way to make films because it’s real, and you’re really there.
‘ABCD’ is impossible without Prabhudheva. So ‘ABCD 3’ will have Prabhudheva for sure. The first and second films were written keeping Prabhu in mind, and same goes for the third series as well.
To me, sound is a crucial component to, really, any moviegoing experience, but particularly with suspense films or thrillers. I think you need the audience to become subtly really attuned to the soundscape in, like, this uncomfortable way.
In the kind of films offered to me, I don’t even get the role of a city-based college girl. How do I let people know I can do sophisticated, contemporary roles, too?
I cannot put pressure on myself that I have delivered a Rs 100 crore film and now I have to give it again or it will not be successful. Films that earn Rs 50 crore or Rs 60 crore are successful, too.
I don’t need a fantasy life as once I did. That is the life of the imagination that I had a great need for. Films were the perfect means for satisfying that need.
I got a lot of film companies approaching me to write some songs for their films.
I am writing a book called ‘The History of Australia in Hundred Objects.’ It’s of things we have invented in Australia. And you know, some of them are amazing. We invented the clapper boards used in films. We invented those cranes – those big long cranes used on construction sites.
Fear is a problem with film music and films; people want to be conventional, and there’s more commercialism today. If you are not daring in your art, you’re bankrupt.
My roots are on the live performing stage, so while I enjoy making films and the other things that I do, when I get on stage, I feel at home; I’m comfortable.
I don’t see scarey films. I certainly wouldn’t go see my films.
Right from childhood, I have enjoyed films which belong to the thriller genre. As a kid, I would read novels written by Agatha Christie and James Hadley Chase.
The problem is I don’t have respect for the films I make after I’ve made them. I detach myself and get embarrassed when I watch them later.
Growing up I always loved films that transport you to another world and has things you never see in every day life.
The problem with independent films is that they can be hit or miss. I’ve seen scripts that have blown me away. But there have to be all the right ingredients in place to make them work: the director, cast, publicity, distribution.
I read and watch movies. I can’t go to the movie theater much anymore, though, because I get recognized. It’s worse sometimes if I wear a costume and try not to get recognized. I watch most of my films on airplanes.
Because I work so much, people think that I have a team writing for me, but that’s not why I chose to write music for films. I chose to write music because I like to write music. So every single note that comes out of my studio is written by me, and I wouldn’t be able to do two movies at the same time.
I’ve always wanted to do stunts for films and television, and I’m doing exactly that. I’m glad it is my job, but I’ve said it before that I’d probably do it for free.
We make films that we ourselves would want to see and then hope that other people would want to see it. If you try to analyze audiences or think there’s some sophisticated recipe for success, then I think you are doomed. You’re making it too complicated.
My favorite books, art pieces, films, and music, always have something jarring about them.
Will Smith would not be Worldwide Will Smith if he had not insisted on going worldwide and touring with his films. You have to build that audience for people and allow for it to happen.
I was a big fan of the Tim Burton films. I really liked the character. And I remember thinking the Batmobile was very cool.
I tried to score a few films with this composer Brian Reitzell here in L.A. We made a bunch of music we really loved, but we got fired from the film for being too weird.
Fame can be very dangerous, because you can start to enjoy that part of it. And that’s not the good part of what I do for a living. The good part is the making of films. The unpleasant part is the fame part, if you’re not careful.
Roja,’ ‘Bombay’ and ‘Dil Se’ weren’t planned as political films. It was a phase India was going through and these things affected me and found their way into my work.
This is what the difference is between Hong Kong and Chinese cinema – Chinese cinema was made for their own communities. It was for propaganda. But Hong Kong made films to entertain, and they know how to communicate with international audiences.
All of the characters in my films, they share one commonality. It doesn’t matter whether they are good or bad, it doesn’t matter whether they are smart or stupid, these characters all take responsibility for their own behavior. I’m much the same.
I accept all interpretations of my films. The only reality is before the camera. Each film I make is kind of a return to poetry for me, or at least an attempt to create a poem.
I like making films about different cultures. I’m interested in things that I’ve never encountered before. I try to put myself in the audience’s position.
All my films are statements, especially when I write them.
Well the Bombay film wasn’t always like how it is now. It did have a local industry. There were realistic films made on local scenes. But it gradually changed over the years.
It wasn’t until I was 14 that I finally saw her films. We found an old 16-millimeter projector in the attic, put up a bedsheet – I ironed it myself – and watched reels that were given to her by Paramount.
Obviously, the cinematography of films is art, just as a still shot can be art. If I’m watching a Wes Anderson movie, the colour palettes alone, and the way they’re painted, could be art. With music, you’re a little bit limited, of course, because it’s only audio.
I am going to be an actress. I am going to meet Quentin Tarantino. He will fall in love with me. We will get married. I will be the lead in every single one of his films. He will be like Uma who?
I am very emotional, and I get really upset when any of my films flop. I also get hurt over silly things. That is the way I am; I can’t help it.
Some films change your life a little.
Science fiction films are not about science. They are about disaster, which is one of the oldest subjects of art.
I am totally inspired by ‘Godfather,’ one of the greatest films made. Also, I am fascinated by the thought of how someone becomes a gangster and continues to be one.
I have had unsuccessful films, but I learned a lot from those films. I give my failures as much importance as my success.
Probably around junior high, I became obsessed with films.
There are still things technically about films that I think are a mystery to me and I want to remain a mystery. I don’t particularly want to know what everyone’s job is because I’ve got lines to learn.
My husband encouraged me to stand on my own, gave me the nudge to do what I wanted – either singing or directing films.
I don’t really have much to prove. I can easily go in a comfort zone, make two films a year, hype them because I’ve signed them as a star, make them cheap and they will be big hits.
I came out to Hollywood when I was just 18, and my dad, he was really into Hollywood and theater and art, and I guess growing up, he exposed me to a lot of culture, and I just started making Super-8 films in high school and decided I wanted to be a filmmaker.
