Speaking at an Open Forum conducted on the topic ‘Indian cinema and the idea of cinema’ held at the International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK 2022) today, popular filmmaker Anurag Kashyap elaborated on how the freedom of filmmakers had been constrained in contemporary India.
Kashyap stated that contemporary films now focus on patriotism and social satire, and filmmakers are scared of taking on political subjects. He also opened up about the difficulties in having to express one’s creativity in an India which is scared of the vocal sections of society.
“I am not the brave person I used to be when I was starting out as a young filmmaker,” confessed Kashyap. The struggle right now is to figure out how to get a film seen by the audience, he added.
Lauding Kerala for upholding freedom of expression, with the state government providing critical support to the film industry, Kashyap expressed interest in collaborating with the Malayalam film industry.
Emphasising on the importance of mainstream cinema in discovering and supporting fresh talent, Kashyap said his role as a producer was to expand the possibilities of cinema.
Film critics G.P Ramachandran and V.K. Joseph also participated in the forum. Mammed and Regi MD moderated the proceedings.
