Cinema halls will always stay, despite online video streaming platforms: Anurag Kashyap
Lust Stories
Anurag Kashyap speaks to WION about the relevance of cinema halls in digital age and his latest film 'Lust Stories'.
With the advent of online video streaming sites, cine-goers now have the choice to sit at home and enjoy films from across the world. Filmmakers, TV producers have also found web a new medium to push content which may not work on the big screen or on TV.
More and more producers are now making films solely for the digital audience. But with the advent of Netflix, Amazon and host of video streaming apps, will cinema halls cease to exist?
"Cinema halls will always stay. We as filmmakers will make films for all kinds of mediums but cinema halls will remain for people like us. That won't go," says filmmaker Anurag Kashyap.
Kashyap along with Zoya Akhtar, Dibakar Banerjee and Karan Johar directs Netflix's new film 'Lust Stories' which is a sequel of sorts to 2013 film 'Bombay Talkies'.
The anthology will have four distinct stories- each directed by the four filmmakers- with a common theme- lust.
Anurag's film features Radhika Apte in the lead. Without divulging much about his film, Kashyap urged us to watch the film. " See the film. It's about a woman who is very contradictory in life. I am not sure if she wants love or not in her life. She seems very confused. But watch the film to understand what she is all about. I made a film and decided to follow her character. I really don’t know her actually," the director said ambiguously.
Also read:'Lust Stories' is a lot more than the four-letter word and thank god for that
The film will release on Netflix on June 15th but Kashyap isn't worried that the reach of his film would be limited. "I am very happy the way Lust Stories has shaped up. It's okay that the film is not getting a theatrical release. I make films, that is my job. Now, it is up to people if they want to watch it or not- irrespective of the medium."
The director feels that both digital and cinema halls can co-exist. "They will always co-exist. Digital won’t take over. Some films will stay in web format, some for cinema."
Kashyap was in the capital city to launch the Delhi edition of MAMI year-round programme. The programme intends to showcase latest, talked-about- films from across the world to select audience each month. The Mumbai edition is already a hit and now the organisers have planned to take it outside Mumbai. Lauding the initiative to bring world and Indian cinema to Delhi, Kashyap rued that no such festival existed back when he was in Delhi studying at Delhi University.
"We didn’t have anything like this back when I was in college. There used to be only IFFI and there was no awareness about the festivals. I discovered IFFI in '93 and I was in Delhi since 1989. Had I discovered IFFI back then instead of waiting in the canteen for that girl – I could have watched a lot of films," Kashyap admits with a grin.
Calling MAMI an important platform for smaller films and indies, Kashayp said, "It is an important platform for opening up cinema to the world. Which is why it matters."
Apart from 'Lust Stories', Kashyap's upcoming projects include web series 'Sacred Games' which he is co-directing with Vikramaditya Motwane. It marks Saif Ali Khan's debut in web space and co-stars Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Radhika Apte. The series will be on Netflix in July. Kashyap is also directing 'Manmarziyaan' which stars Taapsee Pannu, Abhishek Bachchan and Vicky Kaushal which is slated to release later in 2018.
