‘Cinema is a soft target’ Says Film-Maker Vishal Bhardwaj

Film-maker Vishal Bhardwaj minces no words when he says that he finds it annoying when people attempt to hog the limelight by creating an issue around a film, just before its release. “I want to kill all those who come up with legal issues before the release of a film,” says Vishal, who had to remove a scene from his 2014 film, Haider, after he got a legal notice from an Imam, who claimed that he had been tricked into being part of the film.

The 50-year-old director, who has helmed critically acclaimed films like Maqbool (2003), Omkara (2006) and 7 Khoon Maaf (2011), in the past, says that it’s unfair that people and organisations use cinema to promote themselves. “It’s sad that people look at cinema as something that can help them get noticed easily. A small political organisation gets up and decides to vandalise theatres, so that it gets noticed. Cinema is a soft target,” he says, adding that the government should step in to stop protesters who make such unreal claims. “We need the law enforcers to stop this kind of blackmailing,” he says.

According to Vishal, the chances of a film-maker getting into legal trouble are higher when he or she is making a biopic. “Biopics are very interesting to make and watch, but, in our country, it is very easy to get up and sue someone who has made a biopic. Some distant relative will come up with a bizarre claim,” says Vishal, adding, “I think we should make biopics on such historic characters that even their distant relatives are not alive (sic).”