Last Updated:
Ram Gopal Varma said the South Indian industry continued to make ‘masala’ films inspired by Amitabh Bachchan’s style when the legendary superstar was on hiatus in the 1990s.
Ram Gopal Varma said South filmmakers are focused on grassroots. (Photo Credit: X)
Filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma, in a recent chat, opened up on the evolution of South Indian mainstream cinema. Shedding light on the fascinating journey of the cinema down South, the director revealed that the industry once thrived by remaking iconic Bollywood films, which particularly featured Amitabh Bachchan. He added that the superstars like Rajinikanth, Chiranjeevi, NT Rama Rao and Rajkumar rose to fame after playing the protagonist in these remakes.
During a conversation with India TV, Ram Gopal Varma said, “Entire South, all four languages, in the beginning, they were making remakes of Amitabh Bachchan films. Rajinikanth, Chiranjeevi, N.T.Ramarao, Rajkumar, all of them were making remakes of 70s and 80s Bachchan’s films in that era, I’m saying.”
Moving ahead in the chat, the director went on to highlight how the South continued to make ‘masala’ films inspired by Amitabh Bachchan’s style when the legendary superstar was on his extended five-year hiatus in the 1990s.
According to Ram Gopal, during this phase, the landscape of Indian cinema saw a shift, cementing the actors in all four languages in the South industry as demigods.
“In the ’90s, Mr Bachchan took a long five-year break. At the same time, coincidentally, the music companies entered the scene. They made films just to sell their music. That’s when movies like Maine Pyar Kiya came out. But the South never stopped making the so-called masala films, which they picked up from Bachchan. That’s how those stars became big demigods. It continues to date,” he noted.
In the same conversation, Ram Gopal Varma also reflected on the then-young Bollywood directors’ exposure to foreign cinema, primarily due to their knowledge of English and their upbringing in urban areas. He stated, “If you observe, most commercial directors in the South are little exposed to cinema. They can’t talk about cinema like we do. They’re very close to the ground root.”
Backing his claims, the filmmaker narrated an incident involving an unnamed producer’s reaction to the film Pushpa: The Rise, directed by Sukumar. A few days before the film’s release, the producer expressed his scepticism about the film’s performance at the box office due to the unconventional portrayal of the protagonist.
Kashvi Raj Singh is a Sub Editor at News18. She extensively covers Bollywood, Hollywood and television. She not only keeps an eye out for interesting news angles but also often writes social commentary in long-…Read More
Kashvi Raj Singh is a Sub Editor at News18. She extensively covers Bollywood, Hollywood and television. She not only keeps an eye out for interesting news angles but also often writes social commentary in long-… Read More
- First Published:
