Vivek Agnihotri, who is gearing up for the release of his upcoming film The Vaccine War, on Monday said Bollywood actors are “dumb”.
The director is known for his candid views about the Hindi film industry, and does not hold back. In an interview, he once again criticised Bollywood and revealed that “celebrities’ dumbness” pulled him down.
Speaking to Jist’s Unscripted Podcast, The Kashmir Files director said he felt that the stars he was working with were uneducatedignorant.
“I started feeling that the stars I work with are not educated and have no idea about the world,” he said.
“So their dumbness was pulling me down. They are so dumb that they pull you down with them.”
Agnihotri called himself wiser and more intelligent than the actors he has worked with and said his world view is “definitely better” than theirs.
He added that Bollywood films are “dumb because of the actors” featuringwho appear in them and that the Hindi film industry keeps presenting the audiencecoming out with similar kindsthe same type of films, thinking that the audiences are dumb too.
However, he said that he said he is different and as a writer and director, but his film’s worth is “equal to the star of the film”equated with the star.
He also said that the audiences are “very intelligent”, and if they are provided with intelligent material, they will consume it.
“As a writer and director, my film’s worth is equal to the star of the film. The film is never known because of me, the film is always known because of the dumb actor,” he said.
“So I resigned mentally from Bollywood.”
Backing Agnihotri’s claim isBut actor R. Madhavan, who said that has praised Agnihotri, saying he was “totally blown away” after watching The Vaccine War.
He posted on Instagram that Agnihotri is a “master storyteller who makes you cheer, applaud, weep and euphoric, all at the same time”.
HeAt the same time, he added: “Stellar performances by the entire cast, so beautifully depict the sacrifices and the sheer grit of our Indian scientists aptly and impactfully.
“Take a bow, team #TheVaccineWar... the Indian scientific community owes you gratitude as we to them. Go see the film in the theatres.”
Recently, Agnihotri held a special screening of the film in the United States.
The film, which stars Nana Patekar, Anupam Kher, Raima Sen and Pallavi Joshi in the lead roles, is set to hit theatres on Sept 28.
The Vaccine War is mostly about Indian bio-scientists and indigenous vaccines. The film also pays tribute to the dedication of the medical fraternity and scientists during the uncertain times of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Agnihotri had earlier told ANI: “When The Kashmir Files was postponed because of the pandemic, I started research for The Vaccine War. Then we started researching with the scientists of ICMR (Indian Council of Medical Research) and NIV (National Institute of Virology), the people who made our own vaccine possible.
“Their story of struggle and sacrifice was overwhelming... and we won against superpowers by making the fastest, cheapest and safest vaccine.”
Indo-Asian News Service
