Why “Return of Hanuman” should be a Blockbuster
Simply because it has to pave the way for bigger better animation movies that can compete on the international level. Return Of Hanuman can’t, because it falls way below the mark. It has got great reviews but largely because the way it unfolds, it entertains , but when you talk quality, it’s lacking. Whose fault is it other than mine? What does it take to make a great animation movie? Time.. the money, because that buys us time, if not time then it buys us more manpower.. Who do we blame for the quality of animation.. You can not blame the animators..Certainly not TOONZ who did the animation, they have done far better work and if you see closely there are bits in ROH that are brilliant.. those are the bits that were done earlier, they took there own time before things were hurried up..We can not compare our level of animation with that of Ratatouille.. It’s too unfair.. If one really wants to compare then compare with Miyazaki, compare with Triplets of Beleville, Azur et asmar, and all the other 2D films.. we still lack in comparison.. is it because we do not have the skill or technique or imagination.. NO.. we have it all, we have Gitanjali rao who won some 23 awards worldwide for her animated short and is now making her first feature, images of which are awesome.. I remember seeing an awesome animated short called DHAP from someone from NID Ahemdabad.. but they were shorts and made by artists alone over a long two to three years.. Features, If one person has to animate alone , might take ten years.. so you need a team.. A team that can do it in the given period of time..
The first hanuman was the passion of one man.. V.G. SAMANT.. he did it alone over more than three years with his team of ten people..Another year trying to find a distributor.. That film paved the way for all the others..the success of it made everyone greedy.. all of them started to make mythology with the child versions of Gods..and killed the market with the substandard work.. nobody spent more than six months on any of the said films like krishna or whatever,, no one cares because the audience according to them will watch regardless..The biggest business in this country or probably the world is the business of religion.. Art? who cares?
I came on the film first only as a writer.. My daughter , to whom i have dedicated this film, loved the first Hanuman..and she hated Black friday because she couldn’t watch it.. she saw No Smoking in Rome and loved it because she has a crush on John Abraham.. She is seven.. she loves the films made by DADA(Imtiaz Ali,my friend since college and father of her best friend).. to her my films are bad because she can’ t watch them.. Just when I was thinking what can i do to make a film to win her approval, I got a call asking if i would be interested in writing the script of the sequel to Hanuman.. Why me.. I was jinxed.. None of my films had released until then .. this was last year February.. that was also the time my life was falling apart.. Gullal had stopped, nothing was working out.. I took it up because i wanted to please Aaliyah.. Money was not the issue.. I wrote the film in US, while i was staying with a friend in New jersey.. I got back to India.. After everybody got over the initial shock of the modernised Hanuman , they asked me to take over the whole project.. Animation ? I had never done it, sure i had sen them all, had been a huge fan of them, But how to go about it, it wasn’t a joke..They told me you have imagination.. You visualise we will realise.. Upendra Desai , my animation director and his team came first to my rescue.. they had never done a feature..only Television.. They started to storyboard based on the script, they would improvise, storyboard, make animatics. we were going well until we realised we were too much TV than feature.. Too many zoom in zoom outs.. we had to change the approach.. By the time we got the first sequence, it was december.. The release date was fixed for diwali.. until then i had not realised that animation is a process that takes time.. i started protesting against the release date but it was already announced, someone was already making BAL HANUMAN.. Hanuman was and is a free property.. and the budget was fixed.. Abhilash was the animation director from TOONZ.. and i was shooting NO SMOKING.. By the time i finished the shoot of NS we had the line drawings of the opening sequence,, that was february 2007.. Budget was fixed at 9 crores.. we eventually went way over budget.. By the time we finished the film, that too in hurry and saw the moving images in october.. they were not working towards the second half.. By then Hari Varma , who i call the super hero of the film came on and decided that Pralay needs to be 3D.. I rewrote the Climax, Upendra improvised on the demons versus the monkeys war.. all the monkey spoofs were his creations and not mine.. from the Titanic to the Planet of the apes, rajnikant , himesh, jai-veeru, and the kungfu monkey.. him and his team improvised them..Amit babbar , my co-writer created rahu ketu, minkoo and most of the others.. I just supervised and assembelled it as a script.. OK modernised heaven was my contribution..
Tapas Relia the music director made the images come alive and so did sanjay maurya and allwyn rego, the sound designers.. all I did was get the credit..they saved an incomplete film.. Now Coming to the point .. there are as many as seven animation films being made now..not all mythology.. geetanjali is doing her first feature, images of which are extraordinary, you can see them on animation express.. Original, indian, and something noone has ever seen before..All that was possible because the first hanuman worked.. We have the skill and the imagination and all we need to compete on the world level and the only reason we fall short is that the audience is content with just the story and there Gods.. well , Religion has always been the biggest busines in the world.. and because the audience is content , the producer doesn’t care about the quality, they want the product in six months.. Now if we want to improve on the quality of our animation , we need backing and that can only happen when the the money man sees the profit..It,s foolish to compare our work with Pixar and Ratatouille etc.. if one really wants comparisons then compare it with Miyazaki’s studio Ghibli films or triplets of Belville and Azur et asmar etc.. we still fall way below their standard,, They might not have the kind of budget hollywood has but they take time creating.. we just don’t.. It will either take a blockbuster animation from India ir then a Madman like VG SAMANT who on conviction alone spends years creating something all because he passionately feels for it..We can do it.. we just have to want it.. especially the money man ..
The Status of Return of Hanuman is not so great.. the box office is dismal, most of the audience who should be watching the film are celebrating New Years.. I am still hoping the box office picks up for the sake of the animation industry and for the standard of animation that we should have..And here is to Persepolis and “FILM NOIR” the incredible adult animation film which is still under production.. After which hopefully we will stop treating Animation as just cartoons and take them seriously and could use it to tell stories we normally don’t..
Anurag Kashyap
Abhay Deol
Dibakar Banerjee
Hansal Mehta
Khalid Mohamed
Kundan Shah
Anish Kuruvilla
Jaideep Verma
Manish Gupta
Navdeep Singh
Bhavani Iyer
D. Santosh
Onir
Ashvin Kumar
Ramu Ramanathan
Sudhir Mishra
Pankaj Advani
Revathy
Saurabh Shukla
Shilpa Shukla
Sujoy Ghosh
Suparn Verma
Santosh Sivan
Shashank Ghosh
Shivajee
Pavan Kaul
Partho Sen-Gupta
Prroshant Naryannan
Sam Langoria
Satish Kasetty
Anurag
yet to watch the Return of Hanuman for the reasons you mention above but your post makes me want to go tonite!
thats a sweet name, Aaliya. not heard it before.
did she enjoy it?
have read Persepolis, yet to watch it too……..
i wonder if there is still a mental block as far as general indian audience goes, regarding spending $ to go to a theater to see a “cartoon”.
also, reviews like the one posted in indiaglitz.com which unnecessarily brings religion to forefront may not help either.
i wonder if strategies like letting people buy the movie online on the release day itself would’ve worked in favour of the movie…this could’ve at least helped in registering a wider reach..
Thanks for sharing the thought process that made into making the film..i saw the film and i loved the twisted humour that u had all over the place..the one with the sudarshan chakra was hilarious.=))
But i dont agree that the movie must be a success “to pave the way for bigger better animation movies”.
The movie, if it will succeed will make the producers more confident that half baked products are gonna be successfull as long as kids are the target audience. The chaotic climax could have been the highlight of the movie but it seemed to be hurriedly put on paper(thereby putting it to sword) which was pretty sad.
I hope(and iam sure) that ur putting ur points across to the guys at Percept that animation movies do not have the movie making same time frame as regular movies.
@ Anurag…Totally agree. But lets never forget the all important “innovation” which time and again has proved a great work around technology, manpower and funds ! Remember the small teams which made immortal classics like “Snow White & the Seven Dwarfs…and they worked without computer technology …producing a quality of animation which is still unmatched.
The oldies were the true innovators. We are just lazy brains spoilt with technology. That makes a huge difference !
Its like Greg Toland having to make special lenses to achieve deep focus for Citizen Kane. Today a DP’s dilemma would be choosing from a wide variety of lenses available !
I watched the film and loved it, some of the dialogues were awesome…Most of the adults in the cinema hall laughed their hearts out,I dont know how much of the humour part kids r gonna grab, I think it would be more enjoyable for 7-16 age group. The humour is not for very young kids -specially references of Sholay,SRK,Himesh,Titanic,conversations between jwalamukhi and his friend etc. But I think they will love the animation part of it,afterall its our very own Super-God-Hero…
Film will slowly pickup at the box office after the newyr fever is over – a decent film for kids always does well at the box office in India, Afterall there are very few of them being made.
Anurag, to bring out a change in animation we need good producers with just basic common sense to understand that animation is tougher then feature films.
guys, watch this it is six minute trailer for will smith’s i am legend.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=blXOviFd0Lk
Watched Hanuman returns,can just say kudos to people
who dare to be different i.e.making animation films in India.But thats about it.
The animation quality was extremely poor,was at par with the first hanuman.I expected it to be a lot better this time.May be the producers should have tied up with Walt Disney rather than toons.I m sure budget constraints would’nt have allowed them to do so.
Also the movie was quite disjointed.
It seems that the makers want to cash in on the brand ‘Hanuman’ without seeing wat they r makin in terms of content.
All the best for future endeavours:)
Glad you mentioned Geetanjali Rao. We do need more inspiring and talented artists like her to look up to.
Even though animation is considered a rapidly growing market now, sadly thats all there is to it. A market, where companies bid for the lowest to acquire projects, badly pay their employees (until recently some studios used to give their artists a raise of 500 or 1000 bucks!) and have atrociously long working hours. Where is our equivalent of Board of Canada which has produced such classic animation shorts and encouraged talent?
Why animation, even the special effects quality of our films are downright hilarious. Producers probably gawk when informed that post production and special effects is going to take a lil longer than just the few weeks he thought it would. Its this lack of general awareness amongst the people that call the shots that leads to such pathetic results.
Will this movie’s success pave way for more animation films in india? May be. Better animation films? Not necessarily. In fact it just might turn out like Sudhir said. Half baked stuff that audience is anyway going to enjoy. Unless it takes someone to put a foot down and actually raise the bar. Quality wise Karan Johar’s Kuchchie Kuchchie Hota Hai (yeah, the animated version of you guessed it) might turn out to be the best this country has produced (the story boards apparently were really good). But i guess that did take some convincing to do about the time and the budget. Roadside Romeo from what i’ve seen in the trailer, though didn’t amuse me, did look a lot better than what we’ve got so far. But that production is reportedly in problems now.
The other day, on christmas, while surfing through channels found that zee was playing an atrociously horrible christmas special about jesus. It suspiciously looked like it was made here because of a particular studio’s trademark bad design and the english voice overs were indian too. Man, it was so bad that the lord indeed would returneth to his grave!
Honestly speaking, there’s not much difference between how animation, as a medium, is being milked in hollywood and our film industry as well. Its just that they do it at a much higher quality with some style (which is way better than dishing out substandard stuff and still making money). It all comes down to business and franchise after all.
i liked this film and have been liking anrah sir for his bold and hounest comments on the bad behaviour of the film makers and so on.but this time i m very sad to hear that he is writing a film forkaran johar ,to whom sir has been scolding trough this blog i cant say which face of his is right ,the man who fights for the rights of suppressed film people or the man who joins the suppressers. as a great fan of sir i m felling heart n brtaryed because i always believed on him and his idology and he is my idaol to fight against.ye to gulzar sahab ke ek sher ki tarah hua usi ka ima badal gaya hai kabhi jo mera khuda raha tha.
can sir give any answer on this .to his fans
The animation film from NID is “DHAK”.
anuraag, today in some bollywood news show on zoom, they said ROH is doing excellent buisness….atleast in kolkata it is..
heyy anurag i think i probably saw on zoom tv that return of hanuman is doing pretty well at the box office so i guess u dont really ve anything to worry about,
today i went for morning show of Hanuman .. sold out .. didnt gt the ticket (though helped by he fact that today was a holiday and morning shw price is only rs 50)
Anurag can we gt to see her ‘Printed Rainbow’ frm somewhere .. its animation looks neat and very different .
hey Anurag…have you ever tried that Metro-Konkona-roof-Irfan-shout-it.out-aloud thingy…just curious….:)
Why the hell is it not released in Hyd’bad, can any1 plz tell me????
not getting tickets here in chandigarh…house full….part of me walked away disappointed from the box office at fun republic here….not seen the film on the big screen yet…it’s already monday…but then….hey it’s a HIT….not getting a ticket for a movie felt great for the first time
I promise you all Printed Rainbow If it wins the Oscar this year..
Raj.. The Karan Johar Produced, Rensil D’silva written and directed film for which i m doing the dialogues is going to surprise everyone..would rather be misunderstood until then than to start defending myself..
The film has picked up all over guys.. Fuck am i glad..
Hey Anurag, glad to hear the film is doing well across the nation. So, I heard you’re also doing a film for Saif’s production house. Is this actually true or just another a media-made rumor?
oh and Khalid Mohammed gave it 3 stars :-?
HAAAPPPY NEW YEAR PFCians
Can’t the state pick up the slack in financing? Sort of like having an animation dept in NFDC. It might take some market pressure off.
Congrats AK on the success of ROH. Just realised, both AK’s are on cloud nine with their respective movies’ fate, released in the same month, and somewher a teeny weeny similarity in the genres.(For all those who didnt get, I was talking abt Aamir and TZP!…Phew)
Been a fan of you only since No smoking and then went and looked back at your works.Now, I am not ‘jus’ a fan :d
AK, Just like some here, even I do have some stories/concepts in mind for a movie; thankfully that had not been attempted in any languages, i believe. Guess, you would be the best person to share those. one major reason is that you are the most accessible film personality i know:d
I have no idea abt scriptwriting, and even if i do, I dont think I cud do justice wht I have in mind wid my kinda writing.
If its ok with you, please send me a mail and I will reply with all the concepts/stories I have.
vimalvijayan81@yahoo.com
Keep up the gud works and Wish you the Happiest New Year.TC.
@ 21 rbehemoth
Browsing the archival material of the 70s and 80s, I find Khalid Mohammed to be amongst the most vociferous supporters of the Indian New Wave. His writing, given the times in which it was written, is new, well-informed and insightful. I especially admired the brochure he wrote for Mani Kaul’s Satah Se Uthta Aadmi for the Cannes Film Festival. I agree that his review of NS (and NS has evoked unprecedented vehemence even amongst the cognoscenti) was in poor taste but I am constraint to put on record that he wasn’t always so. And there is hope. Always!
Mini,
I have said this before.. The Khalid Mohammed I grew up reading( Late 90’s and early 2000’s) was a different Khalid Mohammed altogether. He was primarily responsible for championing many a movies arnd that period that would not have got its share of attention if it wasnt for his reviews.. But of late he has grown overtly cynical, a tad casual and sometimes cute . A sense of dereliction seems to have crept in and the bias has become too apparent..
But, I just don’t like firebrands and greenhorn movie fanatics who come up with statements like “Khalid Mohammed doesnt understand movies”…..
Nikhat Kazmi doesn’t, I agree… She shud understand that learning the names of a few international filmmakers by rote isn’t what movie reviewing is all about.
I remember his review of Satya, giving it 5 stars. A very detailed review highlighting almost every aspect of that movie and analysing it to its bare minimum. It was the review that made me step into the theatre to watch Satya and later be dazzled by its effect..
He used to write a column for Bombay Times.. ( It was called “Private I” I guess).. and there was a review of Paanch in it. A very positive review. And it ended something like this, “Its the kind of movie you would either love completely or hate completely”)
He shud be browsing thru those articles once more and try analysing his present journalistic stance and ethics to the ones he once harboured..
Yeah, Khalid’s reviews were a part of the growing up process. Sunday had to be tea with a Khalid review next to it. It was painful to see how he suffered some of the worst movies in the 80s, finding occasional relief in Naam (his words: Amazing Achievement), Dacait (his words: Technically Terrific), Jaane Bhi Do Yaron (think he was one of the few who championed it’s cause) and would send in the occassional surprises – Roja (which he loved and wrote about much much much before Bollywood had even thought of getting it dubbed in Hindi)… he was I think one of the first in Bombay to recognize the genius of Mani Ratnam – reviewing Thiruda Thiruda, Mani Ratnam’s Tamil movie on the weekend of it’s release in the Sunday edition instead of the regular Hindi movie… still remember his words on Thiruda Thiruda – “this is what ‘Roop ki Rani Choron Ka Raja’ (Anil Kapoor, Sridevi… major flop) should have been, but wasn’t”
Learnt a lot about films through him… but he wasn’t hitting the bull’s eye each time. “Angoor” was just bad in his review (which I don’t agree with) and so were some other movies. He always had this soft cornor for Salman Khan even in Salman’s worst movies, never ran him down… this from a guy who dared to clash with Amitabh Bachchan at the height (or the beginning of the fall) of Bachchan’s career beginning with “Ganga Jamuna Saraswati” and “Toofan” both which flopped miserably and Khalid came out with a cover article in the then existing Illustrated weekly of India, – a cover of Bachchan in white looking down and the headliner = “FINISHED?”
That was Khalid… the one I see these days is a pale copy of the one that inspired me and my friends and taught us about movies, language and above all humor.
@ Shreehari
I agree that he (was) amongst the more analytic readers of films once upon a time and that the same is reflected in his reviews of films such as Satya and Paanch unlike Nikhat Kazmi who remains an engima as a film critic. Maybe she holds a degree in film studies from some foreign university but her writing betrays a woeful lack of understanding of the medium.
Khalid’s Mammo wasn’t bad. He might have succeeded as a script writer. The mistake he made was to get into film direction where his failure was far too obvious to be ignored. I think that is roughly the time when rejection as a film auteur pushed him into negativity as a film scribe. But, on the other hand, almost every film scribe within the popular media todays lives perilously by trading words as an end itself. Film reviews have become some sort of a parasitic mode of attraction and the Masands and the Kazmis and Bamzaees carry their bluff with great gusto and aplomb. Actually, even in his new avtar as a wordsmith Khalid is far ahead of the worthies I have mentioned here. The problem is that it has little relevance to cinema.
@ Oz
Couldn’t agree with you more! I still see some potential in him if only he could be ‘reclaimed’ from the nearly unending bout of cynicism which he seems to have lapsed into.
@ Mini,…very well put !
I think the problem with film criticism in India is that a lot of bifercations of film jounrnalism have actually occured but the titular description has not been altered to cope up with the changing times.
There are the regular film critics, the trade analysts, the lifestyle journalists, gossip-mongers etc. and all of them seem to have been grouped under the label of “film critics”… And that is a sad state. Coz, then what u r essentially doing is you are not respecting a person’s acumen or bend of mind and instead of slotting them in their areas of interest, forcing them into a catgeory they are not really comfortable with.
Kaveree Bamzee is a lifestyle journalist and that shows in her reviews..
And that like I said, that depicts a sorry state of affairs..
Raja Sen for me is really good. I mean everytime I read one of his reviews I find myself matching my wits against his, sometimes I find my sensibility challenged, sometimes I uneath a degree of resonance. I take with me some things I know about movies and more often that not come back with some things he might have taught me. And thats a pretty good sign that someone’s doing well as a film critic..
Rajeev Masand is the most honest of the lot. He is really honest and unbiased. But, he tends to sometimes analyse a movie just by scratching its surface and doesnt dig deep..
Khalid was and use to be my barometer for films, a faceless man i admired so much, never met him before Satya.. but when i did he was already changing.. After the success of Maammo(which was fantastic) he wrote a script called Fiza and wanted Ramu to direct it and he would chase Ramu.. The man i always wanted to meet had i don’t know what issues with me, I was a kid then, 23, And He wanted to convince Ramu that I was a fluke and to get rid of me and make fiza.. i didn’t care, we always laughed it off.. He was changing but was not a changed person.. but cinema was changing then , suddenly the DDLJ, HAHK, KKHH were changing everything.. all that man wanted was to get fiza made, he was passionate about it and the industry did not take him seriously, no one helped him..he didn’t want to direct it until a bychance meeting with santosh sivan on a flight.. santosh told him you direct the film i would help you..
Fiza came.. Although it was inspired but there was an intention..but the entire industry took great pleasure in trashing it.. that was the beginning of a different man.. He championed Cinema of the other kind.. There is still that someone in there in him but he is cynical and angry and bitter as fuck.. probably like i was.. all the people he championed never supported him.. Today he is just nasty.. But his contribution has been immense..
It’s a cycle.. He used to be a voice.. now he just makes noise..
I don’t even take his good reviews of me seriously.. Infact I am one guy he has given the least amount of bad reviews.. and i have trashed him or questioned him more than he did me.. probably that makes him extra angry towards me..
But I really believe that time has come for him to take a back seat and let others take over..
But some of the others are hopeless too ! :O …Nikhat !!!
:d khalid saab gives worst reviews to almost each n evry film.i think that he should check him self and should know ki film revuew ka matlab burai hi nahi accahi bhi batana hota hain.ye kya hua ki dusro ki filmo ki tikka baoti ki aur khud ki film khud ko hi samagh na aayi.i think that the role of a film criric is very importen but i request that they should at least know the basics of film making and scripting ,the problems which a director or writer faces ,after that they will be able to justice with their importent role in cinema.bina kisi sinf ko jane ,fan ko jane fankar ki aur uske fan ki burai karna bada aasan hain kyonki hindi me ek fraze hain:baba ke hath me bijaniya halki hi lagti hain:
khalid mohd. had good cinematic sensibilities at one time. this showed in his earlier works like mammo.
now he is the worst stereotype of film criticism. shows in his mew movies too.
i still think he can be very good. earlier i could count on him to be unbiased, not anymore. after watching NS, i really thought atleast khalid would like the movie. but he refused to review it. but more than that he has been absolutely evil towards RGV. he trashed nishabd badly. atleast i would take his good reviews seriously, but he has started giving 5 stars to kabhi khusi.. and 4 to oso, really do not know what to expect f him anymore. i still believe if should take a break from film journalsm for a while and then try coming back with lesser cynicism. maybe take a leaf out of baradwaj rangan’s book.
anyway, saw RoH today, and loved it. died laughing when vishnu says “ab toh avatar lene ka bhi time nahi hai”
but totally, totally hated the climax. it was so rushed, and so badly executed. left a bitter aftertaste at the end of the movie.
but other than that the movie was delightful, especially the vanar sena training portion. just wish the last 10 min. could have been improved, it would have turned out to be something special. what to do, pixar has spoiled us with quality…..
Rajeev Masand is my fav!!
Me too brought up reading Khalid Mohd’s reviews.. He has always been pro-SRK and anti-Aamir. But i guess he lost it completely in 2001…when gave K3G 5 stars n Lagaan/DCH only 4 stars!! after tht he praises only those he works with. These days his reviews are really inconsistent.. n doesnt really give one any clue to me whether i shud watch a movie or not.
I disagree wid above posts which down Rajeev Masand. Raja Sen sucks badly.i am unable to understand his type of movie.Sometimes he is too analytical ‘Parallel-cinema-guy’ and sometimes a ardent movie-buff. Rajeev Masand strikes the right balance betn two, betn critical n commercial. Isnt tht ur job if u r reporting for national daily or TV channel.. to guide “avg” cinegoer?
Rajeev Masand is only critic i trust!!
PS:
Khalis Mohd. review of Salman Khan starrer “Kahin Pyar Na Jaye” is must read !!!:d:d:d
My point or rather surprise expressed at comment 21 was purely due to the ‘personal relation’ ( ;) ) of some kind between the two (Anurag Kashyap and Khalid Mohammad), and based on the fact/hypothesis that KH is a very biased reviewer these days and all…
Havent been brought up in the Khalid-Mohammad-championing-art/indi-cinema era, but at present think Baradwaj Rangan is really good (my personal favourite), though his reviews (atleast the online ones) at times are too lengthy/tedious…
Also I, like a lot of people have already said, like Rajeev Masand as i think he is pretty unbiased and catering to masses and the slightly elite classes(probably not the Tarkovsky/Fellini spouting ’super-elite’)…
Munnabhai and Circuit are sitting with their friends and are drinking desi daru. Everyone is looking at their wrist watches and mobile phones with utmost concentration! Suddenly everyone shouts in unison!!
Circuit: Bhai!!! Appy New Year!!!! Barah Baj Gaya!!!!!
Munnabhai: tere ko bhi happy new year circuit!! Boletoh…apun ka life mein sey aur ek saal gaya!!
Circuit: Bhai…Tere haath mein kya hain?
Munnabhai: Gilaas…aur usmein daaru…kyon…
Circuit: Bhai…Glass mein kitna daaru hain?
Munnabhai: Circuit…tere ko chad gaya saala..Aadha gilaas ka daaru hain…
Circuit: Haan bhai…dekha na…Tu yeh nahi bola ki glass mein aadha daaru kam hain….yeh bola ki abhi aadha daaru hain…Abhi main English seekha na…usmein tha…An optimististic always sees a glass half full….
Munnabhai: Abbe tu naya saal mein paka mat…Accha…Circuit…Main yeh sochra tha ki career change karte hain yaar….
Circuit:(shocked) Arre bhai! Tu kya bolrela hain!!
Munnabhai: Ab hisaab kar…Haddi todne ka humko kitna milta hain?
Circuit: Bhai…paanch sey lekar dus tak milta hain bhai….
Munnabhai: Dekh…Itna mushkil kaam aur returns itna kum…..
Circuit: To kya karne ka bhai…
Munnabhai: Main yeh sochrela hu ki main “Naam specialist” ban jaau…
Circuit: Arre yeh “Naam specialist” kya hotha hain….
Munnabhai: Abhi hamara Mumbai mein pagalo ki kum nahi…Logo ko sirf yeh batau ki unke naam mein ek extra alphabet daalna aur tujhe laakho mein paisa dete hain!
Circuit: Aila!! Sach mein??
Munnabhai: Haan Circuit…Ek banda hain Sanjay Jumani bolke…Uska yehich kaam hain…logo ko bolta hain apne naam ka spelling change karne ke liye aur hazaaro aur laakho mein kamaatha hain baithe baithe!!
Circuit: Kamaal ka kaam hain bhai….
Munnabhai: Haan…Abhi ek pikchur aayi thi na…Woh Black Friday waale ne banaya cartoon wala …Return of Hanuman…Pehle uska naam tha Hanuman Returns…Yeh Sanjay ne producer ko bola title Return of Hanuman rakhne ka aur pikchur superhit hojaayegi!!
Circuit: Magar main suna ki woh pikchur ka director apne blog me logo to pikchur dekhne ka request kar raha hain aur kyon usko superhit banna chahiye bolke likha hain….Sanjay Jumani ke hisaab sey pikchur pehle sey heen hit hain na!!
Munnabhai: Abbe woh sab kuch chod….Hit ya Phat…Woh Sanjay toh kama liya na? hahaha! Kal sey hum bhi shuru hojayenge!!
Circuit: Bhai…Pehle main apna naam change karta hu…Cirrcuuite! Kaisa hain bhai?
Munnabhai: Chutiye….Log tujhe Prroshhant Narrayyann Samjenge! Hamara khud change nahi karne ka…logo ka change karne ka aur maal ginneka!! Kaisa hain New year plan!!!
Cirrcuuite: Dhamaal bhai!!
@Mini
Can you provide online link to the archives…? Would like to read those…
Anyways I prefer Anurag’s Take on “Hanuman”,
rather than previews one, (Which is very poor , compare to this one)
This one is Much better, And the dialogues are very funny, And Anurag’s touch is there,
Just watch out, We’r doing Movies Like “Miyazaki’s ” and stories like “Triplets of Bellvelle”
Trust me:)
@ 43 rbehemoth
The archival material I referred to is part of a research project I am currently engaged in – something I have personally collected from various sources. I am afraid it is not available on any single or even multiple website/s. Hopefully, one day it can be all put together on a website but, as of now, it is a bit premature.
I notice a lot of people here endorsing Masand’s brand of reviewing. Problem with his reviews, as I see them, is that they are not film reviews at all. He gets into the mode of reviewing the story along the narrative conventions of the ‘mainstream’ or ‘classical’ (and I use both these terms with trepidation for fear of being misunderstood) cinema. He diligently refuses to address the cinema specific issues.
Rajeev Masand will thrash ‘perceptible poverty’. He will sing loafty praises of a film like “Taare Zameen Par”…..
But, what if a film comes along that shatters all preset definitions of morality , urges you to veer into our subconscious and yet is true. A film so adventurous that it penetrates thru your idea of how movies shud be made, but is still great on its own terms…
I doubt whether Mr. Masand can actually digest such a movie. He can’t see it thru..But, again he is the most honest and unbiased of the lot. His professional ethics r commendable..
@ Mini Randhawa & Sreehari
Mayb u guys r tooo cinema literates. U r the types who analyse a movie so much tht u forget to enjoy it and finally end up unsatisfied after most. NOM!!!:)
Masand works for me perfectly. Not tht we agree everytime.. but over the time i have developed an understanding abt his type n idea of a movie. So i can trust his reccos. His taste too is basically Entertainment first, Break paths second. Which too is mine n i guess Aamir khan’s as well.
Maybe Bharadwaj Rangan works for u guys. Which is gr8 too. Personal Choices i guess. But Mayank Shekhar, taran adrash etc are totally unreliable!! How can TZP n Welcome be on same platform????
Parth,
U r misreading me. Rajeev Masand is really good and is reliable. If he says a certain movie is good, it has to be good. But, I just believe that sometimes he may not be the final yardstick to judge a bad movie. A certain adventurous or really personal movie may just escape his vision of appreciation..
But, at this moment in time, taking in2 consideration where Indian Cinema is right now, he is the apt critic for us to have. But, once we get to a point where we start churning out good films consistently and we might feel the need to hit the next level in terms of movie-making, just up the anti when it comes to the content in our movies, Mr. Masand may just not be the right person to seek refuge under..
And one primary point of distinction. I think Mr. Masand’s knowledge of regional Indian Cinema is limited. In fact with the exception of Khalid Mohammed and Raja sen( who knows Bengali Cinema)I think no other critic knows much about whats happening outside of Bollywood..
Hi anurag,
Have not seen the movie yet, but will certainly go and take my children along.
I’m a lover of animation and since i am in the media and entertainment industry, i’ve a gut feeling that animation movies are under-valued and under-exploited.
We are in the lookout of owning under-valued content for the media and entertainment industry whether it be movies, TV content, animation or digital (online & mobile).
Would be good to talk and explore opportunities.
Regards
Santanu chari
Mumbai
Dear Anurag,
I’ve been trying to get in touch with you for a small telephonic interview[5 to 10 mins max]. I’ve been trying your number in vain. Could you please give me 10 mins on phone. [by thursday, 3rd jan, afternoon]
many thanks,
Praveen
sahi hai
tum cartoon banao, issi ke layak ho.
hollywood ki char cartoon filmien hit ho gayee to yeah art form ho gaya. abhi wahi filme flop ho jatii to kisi ko is art form ki yad nahien aati.
(those who have dedicated themselves to this, i respect them, just for their dedication):*
@ VISHRANT
Get Well Soon MAMU :X
But it looks like he is a hopeless case!!!
[comment edited(st) for violation of PFC's commenter policies. P(L)AYBACK, please refrain from personal attacks.]
PFC Team, I am amazed u didnt edit Anurags comment when he called Khalid the same name ?
And this guy needs more ! The doctor advised a cannon-ball insertion into his posterior ! :D
why PFC gettin BIASED??? may be PFC does not want ppl abusing our own !!
Khalid is outsider na ;)
If Khalid is an outsider,…Vishrant would be E.T. !
second u on that P(L)AYBACK
why everytime Anurag put an article, and people get off track?:(
GUYS KEEP A WATCH OUT FOR HEERA!!
animation takes a long time. for a film like ratatouille, it takes about two years for just animation. and atleast a year or two for all the pre-production work. you can’t afford to change scripts or scenes during the animation.
at companies like pixar, disney, dreamworks, or bluesky, each animator is expected to produce 4 secs of full animation in a week, depending on the number of characters in a particular scene. imagine if the guy spends 2 or 3 months animating a minute long scene putting his best effort, and finds out that the scene no longer exists, or certain dialogue has changed. then you can’t expect him to put his best effort for the next shot he’s assigned.
for the pre-production work, you only need few people who can work on the story, storyboards and layout. you can save lot of money by getting everything ready and locked during the pre-production, so that you don’t run into problems during animation. or the work will suffer.
Nice Shiva,
Thanks for the details ,
right on about Pre Production
Fuck ‘Ratatoille’,.
Talk about “Triplets of Bellevelle”,
http://www.sonyclassics.com/triplets/
as i mention in other thread,
or Miyazaaki’s “Princess Mononoke”
http://www.princess-mononoke.com/
this is my Inspiration,
hey shekhar,
you can’t just ignore ratatouille. triplets and mononoke are masterpieces. but in terms of animation, ratatouille is exceptional. you have to also remember that you can do a lot more in 2D than in 3D. remember the overly leaning waiter in triplets? tell me how can you do that in 3D.
@Shiva
what i mean is not only Animation Technique,
It is about Cultural thing, Storytelling
“Triplets” is about french artwork, their style, Storytelling is entirely differnt ,
and “Proncess Mononoke” , it is about Japanese legend,Myth and sensibility, they show their traditional customs in thier film,
we have to take Inspiration from them, (in my opinion)
I was watching this Documentry about “Studio Ghibli”,
it was so Uplifting, Overwhelming and so Inspiring
(Miyazaki’s Studio)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Studio_Ghibli
shekar,
i agree….but americans don’t have thousand years of cultural history. thatz the reason their movies lack in depth. in countries like china, india, or japan, they have a history, history full of magnificent stories which grandmoms have been telling, mysterious, haunting, and inspiring.
you know, i am interested in seeing a historical story or mythology converted into an animation film…
… but i am also interested in seeing an animation film on ‘Bhains’ (Buffaloes) in the Mumbai Tabelas(cowsheds)! Now can you think of a story around that topic?!
That is what I like about Pixar or Disney! They think outside the box as well as look at …….
Our own.. Finding Nemo, A Bug’s Life, Antz, Monster Inc, or The Toy Story?
A good, thought out Pre-production could help every artist enjoy creating and performing. And we could feel miserable if things are not locked and frozen at the Pre-production stage. But then pre-production should be exhaustive, well thought out, etc.
It is like rehearsals in theatre. If the rehearsals are done right taking time and going in-depth in detail, performing on the stage would be fun for the actors. And Production is a concerted team work which needs to be enjoyed! Like a good trained rehearsed actor enjoys on stage and at the same time does not forget that he is an actor and not the Character. (great theatre personalities like Laurence Olivier, Peter Brook and our own Naseeruddin Shah said that it is wrong for an actor to say that he was so much involved in the character that he forgot himself!!).
Just a thought…
BTW, Goonda, its my wish too to have great epics egt animated and parallely do “out of the box” stories.
But then let us think about even a third kind which is never explored by anyone and have the courage to present to the world, right?
Such forums like PFC could be a platform to exchange ideas and come out with something cool.
E Machaar Bhai… ye kya tum serious logon ke beech me ek helerious tukda daal diya, nobody commenting on that… too good..lol :d
i have always been your fan, after watching “kaun”, and totally agree that animation industry can’t thrive here if a blockbuster doesn’t arrive, and hopefully people will watch “roadside romeo” like they watch other yashraj crap and that would encourage people to make more animated films…..anyway looking forward to seeing hanuman returns….best of luck for dev d.
Hi Santanu chari,
I have a story idea for an animation film. I am developing it into a full script. You can mail me at amitnair_2000@yahoo.com.
Thanks,
Amit.
Hari-ji, O yea, PFC, is such platform – exchanging ideas – working on it – and so on. Hopefully, sooner rather than later, a film will come out of PFC!
anyway, I think… making an animation film on ‘Bhains’ (buffaloes) would be cool.
a few line story:
i bet, you were about to say, “Gaeeii Bhains Paani Mein”.
Nah seriously, there are far more creative people on pfc than me, I am just giving cue to others to share their ideas/concepts…….
:-D
he he Goonda,.
Nice take
there is a similer story in Panchatantra,.
it is called “Blue Fox”
mast hai:)
you mean, this story?
Now who would not want to see that story get animated?
Goonda, Not this one yaar,..
wait, mai dhudata hun, Blue Fox:)
here it is,.
http://panchatantra.org/the-story-of-the-blue-jackal.html
thanks Shekhar! i love these sort of stories – it got more logic than a Yash Raj or Karan Johar or David Dhawan or Rakesh Roshan or …. film has!
Return of Hanuman sucks big time and the original Hanuman was much better. There has been no improvment in animation.
watched it finally…it was fun. I liked it better than the first one but there is a lot of place for improvement, and I don’t only mean in terms of quality of animation. I think it was too cluttered, too many things happening at the same time. First half was fun but it got a bit boring towards end.
Thanks a lot AK for breaking the trend of religious animation movies.
@HG
For some reason, your bhains story reminded me of Premchand’s Do bailon ki katha (don’t ask me why!). Now that would make a sweet animation film.
@shyam ranjan
Dude the movie doesn’t suck big time, in fact it doesn’t suck at all
I went to watch it with a friend who loved Hanuman, and we were the only adults who were not accompanied by the kids. we laughed our heads off at some of the episodes
can’t comment about the quality for i m a naive here but as an audience (and a demanding one) i loved(”liked” is a better word)the movie
Machchar – Sahi hai
Hanuman Returns (return of Hanuman) was a very good watch. I agree with Neeraja – Thank you for breaking the trend of religious (animation) movies!
I see Khalid Mohd has been discussed again here. I just returned from the SCG after watching another dismal cricket match. All I can say is Bucknor and Khalid should retire now. Sooner the better.
Hanuman Returns is a a very good movie, with loads of entertainment value, the kids in my building [at least 10 of them whom i know] loved it.
hey Anurag,
I totally agree with your views on Indian Animation movies. I too think there’s a lot of potential in many folks in our country. But once again the problem as usual comes with money. We don’t have strong production houses backing animation movies. But if we get quality animation which cater to the reality, rather than the oft-repeated gods and religion…something more inspiring or creative…may be it’ll be the birth of the new age animation in India. I am excited about what Soundarya Rajnikanth, the daughter of Rajnikanth, is doing with her ambitious animation Sultan the warrior. The promo looked amazing. And as you said she is taking a lot of time and putting a lot of effort into it. And ofcourse it has the backing of the superstar himself.
boxofficeindia.com lists RoF as ‘Flop’. What’s the straight dope?
@ANURAG..
hii…i d just written a poem about my life… i then realize that poem could as well be for u..the poem does describe wat u went through wen ur films were not releasing n also wat u mite ve gone through wen no smoking failed.. plzz read it n lemme know wat do u think..the language is too simple cozz i cant write like u..
They dont let me what i want to be
they only let me what they want me to be
this is not the road i want to walk on,
this is the road chosen by the world for its marathon.
they say i m free but m i really?
show me my freedom if they mean it seriously.
i was born with wings but where are they?
there’s no space to spread it, is what they say.
do i still ve my wings? i dont know,
or did they just cut them when i was feeling low.
i feel suffocated and i feel trapped.
i feel i was not understood and my talent was not tapped.
i want to not just reach the destination, but enjoy the ride.
how’s that possible when they get upset if i slide.
they want me to achieve something which is their mission,
but how do i make them understand, i dont believe in competition.
they dont let me go and explore,
they say there’s no time for it anymore.
they dont let me cry, they dont let me fall.
they say you ll be insane if you do this all.
when i was winning for this world, i lost myself in the crowd.
but when i lost no one was listening even when i was loud.
why cant i just lose sometimes?
is being a loser one of the biggest crimes?
why are they judging my each and every step?
why dont they understand, i m not walking according to the map.
everyone wants me to win the war and so do i,
but when a few battles are lost on the way why do they say bye?
the world has two categories, that of a winner and a loser,
but do they understand i m none, but a fighter.
i m not really weak, i m strong.
but their idea of my strengths are all wrong.
and so i say,
they dont let me what i want to be
they only let me what they want me to be.
this poem is not about the state of mind u r in rite now but the state of mind u were in..
Rishi,
Well written poem. But there is no need to be in such a pathetic situation. Self-sympethy is the biggest enemy..so just move forward..
You and the likes may not be beloging to TODAY!! No worries.
There is a saying in theatre..
“I am happy if I get 100 humans to see my production rather than having thousands of creatures!”
Those 100 humans will always be there for years to come but the creatures’ life cycle is very short!
So Anurag, keep doing what you think right…
Will def. watch the movie.
Also congratulations to all the people in crew.
i think the produceres should lobby for tax exemption and also should target schools in cities.
@HARI VARMA..
heyy thx 4 liking ma poem…also its just that while writting the poem i was in a very depressed state of mind.. so i just wrote down whatever i was feeling… otherwise m not one of those who pities himself
Hey Anurag,
nice listening to u in Bangalore,…
Watched Hanuman Returns and Saawaariya,
Loved Saawaariya , hanuman return was ok, i felt it could have been better,i must say that the movie was extremely creative and fresh, i would like to have your take on saawariya.
thanks rishi..
Why ” Return of Hanuman ” should be a BLOCKBUSTER
I tght u wanted the name and always called it “Hanuman Returns”
— Kaun Bacha hai jo tum bachoge
Anurag,.
Did you check out the ‘Making Of Triplets’,.
it is damn Good:),.
i doNT think you are doing justice by saying that one can compare the indian animation films with miyaZaki’s or triplets of bellevelle and NOT hollywood. i think these films are far far better than hollywood animation films. & NOT only content wise but also form wise(technique)… its NOT easy doing the stuff these guys do and the piXar’s and other hollywood studios technique has that “looking good” aspect inherent to it but still miyaZaki’s films rock… & so does triplets….
btw NO SMOKING rocks, but the DVD release was quite sad, eXpected at least your commentary (& NOT just making of the music videos) but i will get a copy myself anyways
regards
ujjwal
Check out this one
=))
make sure ,Sound is On
http://www.makkadman.com/
.
@ Shekhar,…had emailed u
@uj,
I totally agree with you…
Thanx, Shekhar…
@ Hari … Good Morning !
I see you have adopted the PFC way of life ! :D
PFC way of life !
What could that be? Just curious!!:):)
Can’t deny the fact that I am struggling hard not to get addicted… to PFC. But it seems it IS difficult…
My Article on the “Animation Team India” should be ready soon…
@ Hari,…its when u find yourself returning again and again to read up & comment on PFC. Am eagerly waiting for your article !
Also thanks for the detailed email. Lotsa other stuff I wanna discuss with u ( ofcourse, if u oblige )…but stuck up with a short term project…so will email you in a few days. Thanks for everything !
u r welcome anurag…
how about one more animation film anurag where you could correct all the flaws n limitations stated in ur article
@Upendra,
Thats how the industry improves and I am sure Anurag would love to do a great film with far less compromises….on his terms…
BTW, are you the Upendra of Rufflines?
dear AK,
i have theme which pixar could produce.
but i cant write no scripts.
can i contact you ?
Hi Anurag
Looks like Sultan (Rajni’s animation movie) might have the budget you were talking about and showcase the talents of the Indian technicians…
@ Dazed ! Awwwwwwwwwwwwwww ! I hate this Bollywood word called “technicians” ! In this case they are highly creative people called ANIMATORS !!! Here every body from a Cinematographer, Sound Designer and Editor to a grip or clapper boy is called a “technician” !!!…And they are handed out awards at dubious award functions like some High Class Honchos are distributing free “kambals” to slum dwellers. They arent even allowed an acceptance speech ! ( mostly )…My plumber or my electrician are technicians…and I dont even call THEM technicians ! …cos they Also have their moments of creativity !
ANURAG.. you COWARD. I NEVER THOUGHT YOU WOULD BE SUCH A LOSER. YOU PATCHED UP WITH UP KARAN THE ASS HOLE. ANURAG PLEASE STOP BEING HYPOCRITE. AT LAST U HAD SOLD YOUR SOUL .
@k.d
buddy… i hope u understand that even if anurag is workin wid kjo, its only gonna b on his own terms..its a victory 4 anurag not 4 kjo…cozz they r comin 2 him…he’s not goin dere 2 beg to them 4 wrk… so get some brains..byee
when is anurag comin to ftii.. anyone got any idea.. and will he come to piff closing ceremony.. reply… ;-)
hii
can anyone plz tell me dat when will the pfc pitcher begin?
abhishek, please stop posting the same query in different posts. your question was answered yesterday in the comments section of this post. check comment #26.
http://passionforcinema.com/pfcronin-round-two-the-reviews/#comments
sorry P(l)ayback, but I guess there would be more people involved in animation movies than just the animators…?
Anyway that’s what I heard Soundarya Rajnikanth (man, she’s hot!) referring to them as in an interview. Guess I followed the producer’s lead…
@kD,..
Open forum doesnt mean , you can blabber anything,
and who are you ,at first place?
and
Whats wrong, working with Karan Johar
kids are these days,…. my..
@KD -
Abe isme coward hone ki kya baat hai …
If Anurag is working with him, his work will have his Stamp over it …
U see .. and have some respect for others …
PFC open hai to ye nahi ki kuch bhi likhoge…
x(
Anurag,
I watched ROH with my son ( 5 Years) and we both did not like it. There were too many tracks in the movie. it really confused us. But best part was quality of animation.It is definitely best Indian animation so far.
We both loved first Hanuman spacially first half of the movie although animation was not that great. Krishna failed on all fronts including animation. (ROH is ten times better than Krishna).
Why there were so many tracks and villains in the movie? Afterall you were making movie for children and not an experimental movie like ‘no smoking’?
I think ROH failed because of the script. Please start taking responsibiliy of your work and stop pointing fingers.
Regards
- Sameer
hi anurag
watched ur film today..liked it….
i liked the climax very much…the images speaks strongly on the problems faced by our world due to pollution
it made me remember the stinking spirit scene from miyazaki’s spirited away
i liked all the monkey spoofs himesh, sholay, oso
etc
good work..keep it up
Guys, Anurag was the one who apologised to karan..isnt it sad enough, Rishi do you really think that anurag would be working on his terms, if that is the case. kudos to anurag. I respect him, and admire him for his work. But he shud continue his fight against the neo liberal burgeois who are trying to corrupt the indian film industry.
Hi, saw an interesting piece on the Anurag-Karan backstory at bollywoodwhisper.blogspot.com. Check it out,guys.
I saw Return of Hanuman as the show was available in the morning and the price of tickets were lesser in morning. I was interested in watching it but not too excited. But having seen it I just loved it. Never expected that animation film could be so much fun. Can’t think of any reason that such a film should not earn more than stupid films like OSO. Really was expecting the business to pick up but maybe the promotion could have been done in a better way. I have to admit that i haven’t seen much of animation from the west but couldn’t find any lack of quality in ROH. On the other hand I was quite surprised and awed by the quality of animation. Am sure it was all result of very hard work put up by you and animators. Also music was fabulous. The best thing was ‘Pet hai ya ha black hole’ wala part.
:d/
Mr.Kashyap,
I would like to watch ‘Paanch’. Can you tell me if any DVDs are available? I have looked on Amazon.com and other online shopping sites. I live in the US, but even when I went to India recently, I couldn’t find a DVD. I would be very grateful if you let me know where I can get the movie.
‘No Smoking’ was very interesting and ‘Black Friday’ was amazing…. loved it. Looking forward to ‘Paanch’ now!
All the best.
Regards,
Debashri
[Editor Note : Comment partially deleted :
Caution : (mr | nathan.mife@gmail.com | IP: 203.199.89.123 ), Please dont try to misuse the platform. If you want to say abuse to any filmmaker, please have guts to do that in person ]
But it is a big flop you ……..
Mr.Kashyap,
. Seriously, it was very different from the animation movies that have been made in India. Maybe you can re-do the movie with a better budget! The end of the movie seemed bungled a little bit. But we still LOVED the movie.
Saw The Return of Hanuman yesterday. I thought parts of it were FABULOUS! Did not like the quality of animation though. But the direction and the way the movie unfolded was very ‘hatke’
hi.i have few movie plots in my mind. but as i dont have any contacts in this field i am finding it difficult to make my dreams come true. could u please help me. few of my plots are
1, betting in cricket and underworld
2, subash chandra bose is alive and meets reincarnation of Gandhi
3, formation of a terrorist
4, how a guy spoils his future
please contact me at 09886232180
[Editor Note (D) : Please do not repeat your comments here]
hey MR.ANURAG,
asking this to you because you too made a book adaptation once, saw this movie called ‘the shining’ by KUBRICK, i really did’nt like this idea of suddenly popping in characters into the movie from the book,who does’nt have any connection with the rest of the film,eg.the lady in the bathroom,the bisexual man at the end.I thought while writing, KUBRICK followed his own instinct,but could’nt forget the book also, because of which it neither became his own creation, neither a complete adaptation,so what exactly is a good adaptation, where is the limit and the domain of the filmmaker himself?
about khaleed mohammed, i really loved his fiza as well as the performances by the actors in it, though i dont have much knowledge about the man himself and didnt like the very little of the other works of him that i had seen..
Anurag – enjoying foreign travel? have sent you an email – need someone’s contact details – have mentioned if you didn’t get the message pls email back at ashvinkumar@mac.com
Anurag,
And just what are you up to? I am in the beginning stages of an interesting project but when are you and I going to do something together? Twisted minds like ours should not go to waste. Send me an email to the address above. Regards to all,
Gerry
Since I never left my email, here it is: Ghooper@drexel.edu
Long time no see boss. Plz come back
anurag,i just wanted to ask you a question?have you read srilal shukla’s raag darbari.i think it could be made into a true genre bender of sorts.i heard you were going to make some bhojpuri movie.
i liked the movie. i like ur type of writing and movies…. i pray to God that anuraag kashyap really works.
you can watch my review on ROH at:
www.bollywoodreviews.net
Wrote an article on The Return of Hanuman in a Singapore daily.
“MOVE over, Superman. Here’s Hanuman from India, the “original” and potentially the next blockbuster superhero…”
Check it out here:
http://www.todayonline.com/articles/240437.asp
I hope you will soon start bloging about Dev D. I’m anxiously awaiting!
If someone is looking for a movie to inform the young about Hanuman, then THIS IS NOT THE MOVIE. The movie tried to be fun, but the movie maker sacrificed all that is valuable. The fun and comedy in the movie could have been maintained without sacrificing key characteristics that make up Hanuman such as:
The fact that he is known to be chiranjeevi and a perfect yogi and hence the term “return of hanuman” with reincarnation doesn’t make sense. Narada showing fear doesn’t make sense. The storyline seemed like from a typical western movie.
Give me the money and the resources, I can do a better job!
My opinion about ROH.
The storyline is OK.There is lots of creative pulse all over the script.
Maybe ROH is a big hit,But the overall quality of the movie is far far below average.
Some comedies is not registering.The 3D part is too bad quality.It
Hi Anurag,
I would like films like Return of Hanuman to succeed and give a push to Indian animation in the right direction. But the production quality is so shoddy, that I can’t help disparaging such attempts. The Persepolis books are awe inspiring and the images almost jump off the pages and affect your consciousness. We are a few decades behind in animation content and delivery. We cannot accept an animated film without a cute animal of some kind or worse still a religious icon. The graphic novels of Will Eisner cover a gamut of emotions and very human situations. It is sad that with an unlimited ocean of possibilities, and with the complete freedom to draw our dreams, animation in India is still forced to pander. Tragically, in a nation of a billion lives in motion, we find it hard to depict just a few realistically in the exciting medium which presents itself before us, an inviting yet lonesome muse.
Kartik
“…hopefully we will stop treating Animation as just cartoons and take them seriously and could use it to tell stories we normally don
[edited (st): adish, follow the PFC guidelines when you comment.]
Dear Anurag,
Havnt seen a blog update from u for a long time.I do not know if that is because Devdas release has a lot of time to hit the screen or genuinely have date problems for blog writing.I desperately want to see a blog entry by you.
Saw your interview on Zoom.U talked about Dev D and the tradition of Indians of self-pitying or glorifyin their miseries..celebratin dem and blah.
If u hav seen yor interview,you werre de one who was self-pitying yaar!Half of the interview ,u talked abot hw u got jacked in yor childhood and den in college and den how u struggled and den how yor films got or were stalled,how did u face anxiety attacks and blah.what i was looking for was a postive outlook towards film-industry who challenged de system and did not budge and stil makin a film dat he wants to!
Not even for a second u made a direct statement or an implied one,which owuld bring out that positive side of your life(if u believe dere is any ,dat is!)
u r intelliegent is all i kinow.Did you set up de tone for de interview coz u knew dat U had to talk about Dev D(which deals wid self-pityin and mockin at it) in de end of the interview?
We all love you for your fightin spirit boss.Waiting for a blog entry from u!
hi,
r u going to make another toon movie?
here is an idea for free
“ek educated gadha who tries to make their generation smart by educating them”…….
Dear Anurag,
Writing to you through this site because i dont have your email address.I hope you will read this.
This message is not related to your movies rather this is more of a personel message.
Just to introduce myself , sanjay , From Delhi , and i think i understand cinema .
I heared you in India Habitat Centre ( New Delhi) during the screening of your NO SMOKING.
then i read your blogs and then last sunday i saw your interview with Kabir Bedi on ZOOM TV.
After knowing you from these intractions ( one way intractions) I would like to send you a book about dipression becuase my feeling is that Anurag kahyap ( The human being) needs that and my understanding is that after spending some time with that book you will evolve and then your right potential will come out in the World of cinema.
This book is not something spiritual or jhoot kee motivaltional book ,,and i feel a person like you will have lot to gain from this,, Aur aaakhri baat ,, pasand na aaye to paise wapis,,,thats a joke ,, kyonki i want to send you that as GIFT AS IT WOULD BE MY PLEASURE .
Can you please write me back or can proivde me your email so that i can take the next step to send you that.
This fan of yours who after seeing NO SMOKING thought that sure the movie is OUT of Box Idea and it has given a new style to say filmakers point of view ,, So what if people like Khalid Mohamad or Rajiv Masand kinds donn able to read between the lines and moreover they are not the viewers that you want even.,
please write me back if your read this..
warm regards and good luck
SANJAY
hey anurag u arent writing anymore blogs these days??? Can u tell me from where can i get or download ‘paanch’. good luck for dev d.
Hi guys….Anurag ke tabeley se ‘AAMIR’…aa raha hai, jo ‘CAVITE’ ki copy hai.
Until the Bombay film industry learns to take technology seriously, you can forget about creating any serious 3D feature. The industry seems happy with their green screening and and few match moves and don’t want to learn about the rest, don’t want to build custom render pipelines, don’t want to have strong programmers working on their films.
Also, until money is put into the business, it will not attract the best talent. But the animation industry seems to be headed by people who see it as a business,extracting maximum profits, rather than a passion.
So we get sad releases like Krishna, and brute force cut and paste approaches like the Sivaji song get highlighted as big achievements.
the short animation of NID u were talking about was Dhak by Rajesh Chakraborty, 2002.