Naseeruddin Shah expressed his disappointment in Hindi cinema and revealed why he stopped watching Hindi films while speaking at the Meer Ki Dilli festival in New Delhi on Saturday, 17 February.
The veteran actor said that Hindi films did have the 'hope of getting better' if filmmakers weren't making them solely with the intention of 'earning money.'
According to PTI, during the festival, the Ishqiya actor said, “It really disappoints me that we take pride in saying Hindi cinema is 100 years old, but we have been making the same films. I have stopped watching Hindi films; I don’t like them at all."
"Hindustani food is loved everywhere because it has substance. What substance do Hindi films have? Yes, they are being watched everywhere. They say, ‘how exotic, how Indian, how colourful’. Soon they will be bored of it because there is no substance,” the 73-year-old actor added.
Naseeruddin further shared that he believes it's the responsibility of "serious filmmakers" to project society's reality in front of the camera. "There is hope for Hindi cinema only if we stop seeing them as means for making money. But I feel it’s too late now. There is no solution any more because the films that are being watched by thousands will keep being produced and people will keep watching them; god knows till when," he said.
"So those who want to make serious films, it’s their responsibility to show today’s reality and in such a way that they don’t get a fatwa or ED doesn’t come knocking on their doors,” the actor added.
Naseeruddin also gave instances of Indian cartoonists like RK Laxman, who kept making cartoons despite suppression from authorities during the days of emergency.
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)