Kamal Haasan Says He's 'Running After Money': 'I'm Choosing The Industry That'll Finance Me'
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Kamal Haasan talks about missed collaborations with legendary directors, and his Malayalam cinema aspirations.
In a heartfelt and brutally honest conversation with News18 Showsha, Kamal Haasan opened up about his aspirations in Malayalam cinema and the legendary directors across industries that he never got to collaborate with.
Asked if fans will see him in any new-age Malayalam cinema, he said, 'I'm still running after money to run my company. I personally don't need anything more than I have. But I need money to make my films! So I'm choosing the industry that will finance me."
He reminisced about missed collaborations with greats like M.D. Vaidyanathan and Mrinal Sen and added, 'I'm the most unfortunate guy who was fortunate enough to enter the field but never did a movie with the direction of MT Vasudevan Nair. Nor any of the great classic Malayalam directors except Sethu Saab. And that was in the beginning. And then I had to beg him to come back to Tamil. He was happy to come. But except that, he was one of the top international directors who were in Malayalam. I couldn't get to work with Mrinalda (Mrinal Sen). He called me and I was doing Thevar Magan at that time. He said, 'So you won't come to do my film?' I said, 'I'm producing my film. But I had to stop it which means a great financial loss. I can't afford it'."
The actor is now gearing up for his 234th film, the much-awaited Thug Life. Directed by Mani Ratnam, the duo have reunited after Nayakan, which was released in 1987. Talking about the long-due reunion to News18, Haasan says, 'No, it's not [worth the wait]. We should have done it earlier. We have been apologising through different interviews for not joining up. Because it is our loss, not yours. Absolutely, our loss."
Kamal Haasan will be seen playing the titular role of Rangaraya Sakthivel Naicker in Mani Ratnam's Thug Life, which also stars Silambarasan TR, Trisha, Abhirami, Ashok Selvan, Joju George. Sanya Malhotra marks her Tamil Debut with this film.
First Published:
May 22, 2025, 22:03 IST
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