Last month, Shah Rukh Khan came up with the comedy-drama film Dunki. The very next day, actor Prabhas’ film Salaar was released. Currently, both films are locking horns at the box office. Filmmaker Rajkumar Hirani recently shared his two cents on the clash between the two movies backed by such acclaimed actors.
Rajkumar Hirani speaks on Dunki clashing with Salaar
Filmmaker Rajkumar Hirani was in a conversation with DNA wherein he spoke about his movie Dunki clashing with the action film Salaar. He said that the fact that both movies are doing good business is a positive sign for the Indian film industry. However, he thinks that movies released close to each other are affected.
Giving a producer’s perspective on it, Rajkumar Hirani said that there are a limited number of theatres in the country. Moreover, every viewer may not have enough money to watch films back-to-back or on consecutive days. Certain people choose to see one film in a week or even a month. “So, I am sure at some level it affects both the films. In a clash, business is affected,” he was quoted as saying.
Having said that, the Sanju director divulged that there is no option to that because there are 52 weeks and 200 films are being made. “There would be clashes. Sometimes bigger films would clash and sometimes smaller ones. All these kinds of things will continue happening. There is no escape from that,” he quipped.
Dunki director Rajkumar Hirani talks about the trap filmmakers fall into
In the same conversation, Hirani also spoke about the importance of films making good business and how it affects the confidence of a filmmaker. He said that appreciation of the film is important. “That is why we make films so that people can like it. In a way, that is slightly connected to the box office. You definitely want your film to do enough numbers that nobody makes a loss, nobody suffers. Perceptions will differ. But no film should go into a loss so that you can make your next film,” he said.
Hiran added that if that happens, people think that they should try something else since this isn’t working. “Then you try and go against your instinct, which is a trap. When it does a reasonable number, you are confident for the next time,” he concluded.
Director Prashanth Neel weighs in on the Dunki-Salaar clash
In an exclusive chat with Pinkvilla, director Prashanth Neel addressed the Dunki-Salaar clash and the scrutiny both of them received. He said that this is what happens in cinema. You root for your heroes and the emotions get the better of you.
“It might be that way for the fans but for us, we are not trying to compete with one another. We are both trying to survive together. I do not advocate of being a part of something like that and I really wish it did not come down to something like that because both the stars are huge in Indian cinema and they deserve all the respect that they have accumulated over the years. The whole environment is not good for the cinema also. You rather ignore it because there is no way to control something like that. You just let it pass,” he stated.
Neel also opined that there is no war between Dunki and Salaar. “I don’t think either of us think like that. I don’t think makers of Dunki think like that, I don’t think the makers of Salaar think like that. We are here to survive and we are here to impress the audience. We are here to entertain the audience. We are not here to compete amongst ourselves. This is not a cricket match,” he divulged.
