A golden run
FIt’s a special feeling when your film receives so much love from audiences across the world. Padmaavat is a film that’s very close to my heart, because I wanted to present our rich Indian culture to the rest of the world via the medium of cinema. As a film-maker, there can be no better feeling than seeing audiences react so positively.
SANJAY LEELA BHANSALI, FILM-MAKER
ilm-maker Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s latest directorial venture, Padmaavat, is continuing its successful run at the box office, with the film reportedly earning about `520 crores worldwide. As it stands, the film has outdone the collections of Bhansali’s previous projects, Goliyon Ki Rasleela Ram-Leela (2013) and Bajirao Mastani (2015).
According to film critic and trade analyst Taran Adarsh, this is a first of sorts in Bollywood. He says, “It’s well known that the Bhansali has always been associated with magnum opuses, with his unparalleled attention to detail, scale and vision. With Padmaavat, he has reiterated that he is the biggest film-maker in the country today, as this is the first Hindi film in Indian history that’s not headlined by a Khan to cross the `520-crore mark worldwide. This is a feat that no one else has managed to achieve. Bhansali gave Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone and Shahid Kapoor the biggest hits of their careers.”
Bhansali says, “It’s a special feeling when your film receives so much love from audiences across the world. Padmaavat is a film that’s very close to my heart, because I wanted to present our rich Indian culture to the rest of the world via the medium of cinema. As a film-maker, there can be no better feeling than seeing audiences react so positively.”
Adarsh adds, “Every Bhansali film has been a magnum opus, and he has always given his actors career-defining roles, whether it was Manisha Koirala and Nana Patekar in Khamoshi (1996); Salman Khan, Ajay Devgan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan in Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam (1999); Shah Rukh Khan, Madhuri Dixit-Nene and Aishwarya in Devdas (2002); Ranbir Kapoor and Sonam Kapoor in their debut, Saawariya (2007); Amitabh Bachchan and Rani Mukerji in Black (2005); Hrithik Roshan in Guzaarish (2010), or Priyanka Chopra in Bajirao Mastani (2015). Given the powerful impact he makes with his films, it’s no wonder that it’s every actor’s dream to work with him.”