Talktime | Subhash Ghai
He came into the industry in late 60s; is a writer, director and producer who has given hit films like Karz, Karma, Khalnayak among others and done cameos in his directorial ventures. On his 72nd birthday, he talks to SHAlINI SAKSENA about his journey in Bollywood spanning over four decades
Tell us about your journey so farIJ
When one grows, he does so at different levels. Personal, public and professional level. If I were to talk about the public level, let us talk about the stars. In the 50s there were — Dev Anand, Dilip Kumar and Raj Kapoor. When I came to FDI I learnt a lot. In the 60s came Sunil Dutt, Rajendra Kumar and Dharmendra. Then came Amitabh Bachchan, Rajesh Khanna and Jitendra in the 70s so the total went up to six stars. In the 80s came Anil Kapoor, Jackie Shroff and Sunny Deol, Rajesh Khanna and Jitendra became senior. Then came Aamir Khan, Salman Khan and Sanjay Dutt followed by Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgn, etc. So one sees a pattern — that films are made with the help of three to six stars and I have been a part of each era — as a student in the 60s, in the 70s I experienced it and entered the industry. In the 80s I became an executor and have remained so since then.
What are the changes have you seenIJ
The change is that actors of the 50s were more concerned with the work that they did. Money was not an issue. They were hungry for good work. They wanted their role to be good; their scenes to come out great. I have worked with Dilip Kumar in three movies — Karma, Saudagar andVidhaata and associated with him for 20 years but not even once did he ask how much money my films made. He only wanted to know if the film had done well and would say that my responsibility as a director had increased since the movie had done well. The actors today have become businessmen as well.
Is this change goodIJ
Since the society is changing, the actors are changing too. The younger generation today wants money or power. They have no value for ideals or morals. During my time, our parents told us to be good human beings and our grandparents talked of morals. Today, sidhanton ki baat par log hansten hain. Economics has overtaken everything.
Has money become a driving force in movies todayIJ
When Khalnayak was released, it did a business of Rs10 crore. But that money had value and one could buy the world. Today, if one were to see the rate of inflation even Rs100-plus crore is not enough. The expansion one sees in multiplexes is because the ticket rates have gone up. The audience has not grown beyond 3-4 crore. If I were to make a movie today, my target too would be Rs400 crore. If it did a business of Rs100 crore, I would be disappointed too.
Subhash Ghai would not have made a movie that was a zero.
There have been a couple of movies that didn’t do so well at the box office — Kisna-The Warrior Poet and Yuvraaj. The problem was these movies were way ahead of their time and the audience didn’t appreciate what it had to say. Even then it had something good to give to the public in terms of design, colours, etc.
What do you desire as a directorIJ
I have always wanted to make films where I better myself rather than compare myself with others. The fact that 11 of my movies were hits meant that I wanted to make movies that were of international level. I want my films to reflect my growth.
What points does a director keep in mind to ensure his movie is a hitIJ
The theme should be social so that the public is able to connect with it — whether it is emotional, related to music, relationships or patriotic. The subject we choose should have all these elements since it appeals to the aam aadmi.
Why don’t we see the kind of love stories that were being made earlierIJ
People who are making films are either rich or are from the metros. Their idea of relationships is different from that of the middle class who still wants to see films that are pure love stories. In today’s scenario, most relationships lack sacrifice, passion and sincerity. It is more about comfort level. This is reflected in movies today. Hence modern-day love stories appear different.