Mumbai, Filmmaker Imtiaz Ali believes the growing consumption of digital content has made people more isolated, while the big screen offers a shared emotional experience.
Because cinema allows people to share their reactions and emotions with others, the filmmaker said the theatrical experience remains valuable. “Post COVID, the viewing habits have changed. So, things have changed big time in the industry. “The lesson that we got from this was that there should be a direct interaction between a filmmaker and audience, every filmmaker and artist should be connected to people, then they will know what more can they do in their respective field.
But these things are often watched in isolation, either on a phone or on some other device, when you’re alone,” Ali said last evening on day one of a film festival here. “When I’m experiencing something, like an emotion, and the people around me are experiencing the same thing, it gives a very beautiful feeling because humans were not created to live isolated from everyone,” he said. The director reflected on the response to his last film, “Main Vaapas Aaunga”, and said achieving both critical appreciation and commercial success was a matter of good fortune. Otherwise, we are taking a shot in the dark, and that’s why our work sometimes does not hit the mark,” Ali said. Asked about his next film, the director said he is currently writing a story and doesn’t have actors in mind. Ali’s last film “Main Vaapas Aaunga” was a star-crossed romance set during the Partition but told through the eyes of present generation.
Today, people watch a lot more … Today, we’re watching ten times more content in different forms, be it reels, stories, etc.
