Imtiaz Ali says he feels guilty after people quit jobs inspired by Tamasha: ‘I become responsible for the disaster’

Imtiaz Ali's Tamasha, initially a box office failure, became a cult classic, inspiring many professionals to pursue creative careers.

Imtiaz Ali’s Tamasha was a box office flop when it released in theatres in 2015. However, over time, the film found its audience and eventually turned into a cult classic. In the film, Ranbir Kapoor played Ved Vardhan Sahni, a corporate employee who rediscovers his love for theatre after meeting Tara, played by Deepika Padukone. Ved ultimately chooses to follow his passion for storytelling and theatre after quitting his corporate job.

Ranbir Kapoor and Deepika Padukone in a still from their 2015 film Tamasha.

The film especially resonated with young working professionals who dreamt of becoming writers and artists. Inspired by Ved’s journey, many even dared to quit their corporate jobs to pursue creative careers. Imtiaz, in a recent conversation, admitted to meeting several such people in Mumbai. However, he also confessed that he often feels guilty about their decision to leave stable careers behind. The film also starred Deepika Padukone in the lead role.

‘I feel terribly guilty’

Speaking to News18, he said, “I feel terribly guilty. Recently, I went to Boman Irani’s Spiral Bound, a writers’ convention, and he did a magnificent job with it. A lot of new writers were there. So many of them came up to me and told me they left their jobs after watching Tamasha and now they’re writers. The instant thought that came to my mind is, I hope they succeed. If they don’t, then I become responsible for the disaster in their lives. I feel responsible and guilty not only towards the person but also towards their whole families – their wives, suffering children and parents. Their parents may have had aspirations ki mera beta engineer banega aur aage America mein kaam karega."

The director admitted that he has “mixed feelings” about such decisions. He said, “Instead, their children, are now struggling in Bombay as everybody in the industry has to go through that. I’ve got mixed feelings about all of this. I’m sure many of them had lucrative professions but left all of that to be artists just like all of us in the industry who are also trying to become artists."

Imtiaz Ali’s next film

Imtiaz Ali is currently gearing up for the release of Main Vaapas Aaunga. The film also stars Diljit Dosanjh, Vedang Raina, Sharvari and Naseeruddin Shah in lead roles. The film is a love story set during the Partition era and is scheduled to hit theatres on June 21.