Mahesh Bhatt On Saiyaara: "Lacked The Originality Of Anupam Kher's Tanvi The Great"

NDTV

6 days ago

Mahesh Bhatt delivered a verdict on nephew Mohit Suri's Saiyaara, which emerged as one of the biggest hits of the year. Bhatt, who launched Suri with Zeher (2005), appreciated his nephew's style of filmmaking, adding, the film lacked originality.
What's Happening
"There's another young filmmaker, who happens to be my nephew, Mohit Suri. He's made a film called Saiyaara, which is coming on 18th. He made Aashiqui 2 (2013) for me. He's a bright, young boy. He has his own style, and he's coming into his own," said Bhatt on The Himanshu Mehta Show.
Talking about the craze with instant hits and box office euphoria, Mahesh Bhatt said that the industry lacks original voice in recent time.
"But I don't see an original voice in the landscape today. The burden of an instant box office hit, this box office albatross is weighing down everybody. It makes people take plots and stories which titillate and cater to the senses," added Bhatt.
"The dopamine (on smartphones) has been numbing your senses. Because you want to escape the reality of the world. Our filmmakers and singers of bygone days would throw you into yourself. Now, content is used as a way to escape yourself. Anything that takes you away from yourself is popcorn, like candyfloss. I don't see filmmakers with great depth anymore," Bhatt said.
On the other hand, Bhatt praised Anupam Kher's Tanvi The Great for its originality. Anupam Kher made his film debut with Mahesh Bhatt's Saaransh (1984). Bhatt admitted his choice might be out of "emotional bias", but he's a normal person with his share of biases like "everybody else."
"It's a film which roots for the most vulnerable, an autistic child. And he's put in all his own money. I'm awestruck by his courage. I'm so proud that what I ripped up in him, which was there in him, 41 years ago in Saaransh, is now coming into full bloom, and on his own," added Bhatt, calling the film "Entertainment of the soul."
Saiyaara, backed by Yash Raj Films, emerged as the highest-grossing film of the year, led by two debutants Ahaan Panday and Aneet Padda. The Mohit Suri directorial film has already minted Rs 266 crore at the domestic box office. Saiyaara and Tanvi The Great released in theatres on July 18.
While Tanvi The Great didn't get much of box office numbers, Saiyaara has been on a record-smashing spree.
Anupam Kher's directorial Tanvi The Great is inspired from his real-life niece named Tanvi, an autistic patient. It marks the debut of Shubhangi Sharma, and also stars Pallavi Joshi, Jackie Shroff, Karan Tacker, Prakash Raj, and Aravind Swamy among others.
In A Nutshell