Serial dissenter Mahesh Bhatt explains why he rejects Anna Hazare's Lokpal Bill, but still supports the movement
If I'm not with you, I'm not against you
You don't seem to be much in favour of Hazare's protests...
First, I want to clarify that I am not against corruption. But tell me, can corruption be addressed through 'your' bill or 'my' bill? Anna's bill is just as impractical and dangerous as the government's bill. The nation must question Anna's bill as much as the government's. The bill proposes to create a power that is dangerous. Democracy must destabilise power, not augur it in the wrong hands. I get abused online by Anna's supporters so badly when I criticise his agenda. Arre bhai, just because I am not with you, does it mean I am against you?
And your objections are?
By forcing everyone to gulp either Anna's bill or the government's bill, aren't we doing what ex-US prez George Bush did when he said, 'You are either with us, or against us'? I am an imperfect person with an imperfect view of the world - couldn't that hold true for everyone else, including Anna? In the Lokpal Bill issue, I recommend my own perspective and I reject the recipe presented by both sides - Anna and the government.
All art is based on the spirit of dissent
You've portrayed the underbelly of society, but lately you are known as the producer of "Murder" and "Raaz". Then why a play like "The Last Salute"?
Somewhere, I'm unhappy with my own escapist cinema. I found that I couldn't address any serious issue through my films since cinema today is very high on the entertainment quotient and caters to an audience that's under 24 years. But I had to talk about issues too. After all, all art is based on the spirit, and emotion, of dissent. So I resorted to theatre and made this play based on the Iraqi journalist, Muntadar al-Zaidi, who hurled a shoe at Bush. It caters to my impulse of keeping that dissenting view alive.
Why not make a film on it?
The cost of making commercially viable cinema today is very high. And yes, if you want to pull audiences, you have to have the masala. This play is specific to Iraq, it may not interest people here. But Pooja (Bhatt) is making a film on it.
If I'm not with you, I'm not against you
You don't seem to be much in favour of Hazare's protests...
First, I want to clarify that I am not against corruption. But tell me, can corruption be addressed through 'your' bill or 'my' bill? Anna's bill is just as impractical and dangerous as the government's bill. The nation must question Anna's bill as much as the government's. The bill proposes to create a power that is dangerous. Democracy must destabilise power, not augur it in the wrong hands. I get abused online by Anna's supporters so badly when I criticise his agenda. Arre bhai, just because I am not with you, does it mean I am against you?
And your objections are?
By forcing everyone to gulp either Anna's bill or the government's bill, aren't we doing what ex-US prez George Bush did when he said, 'You are either with us, or against us'? I am an imperfect person with an imperfect view of the world - couldn't that hold true for everyone else, including Anna? In the Lokpal Bill issue, I recommend my own perspective and I reject the recipe presented by both sides - Anna and the government.
All art is based on the spirit of dissent
You've portrayed the underbelly of society, but lately you are known as the producer of "Murder" and "Raaz". Then why a play like "The Last Salute"?
Somewhere, I'm unhappy with my own escapist cinema. I found that I couldn't address any serious issue through my films since cinema today is very high on the entertainment quotient and caters to an audience that's under 24 years. But I had to talk about issues too. After all, all art is based on the spirit, and emotion, of dissent. So I resorted to theatre and made this play based on the Iraqi journalist, Muntadar al-Zaidi, who hurled a shoe at Bush. It caters to my impulse of keeping that dissenting view alive.
Why not make a film on it?
The cost of making commercially viable cinema today is very high. And yes, if you want to pull audiences, you have to have the masala. This play is specific to Iraq, it may not interest people here. But Pooja (Bhatt) is making a film on it.
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