Tigmanshu Dhulia: I don’t think we can say that audience is smart now, many bad films have also worked well

Filmmaker Tigmanshu Dhulia, who has pivoted to digital, says that getting people to the cinemas is going to be a huge challenge.

Filmmaker Tigmanshu Dhulia does acknowledge that OTT platforms have changed the appetite of audiences, he is quick to add that there is still a long way to go. “I don’t think we can say that audience is smart now. It is not that the audience has become very intelligent. That is a small portion of the pie, which is conscious of content. Kayin ghatiya films bhi chali hain,” he says.

The filmmaker, who himself pivoted majorly to the digital world, lauds the digital medium. “This was bound to happen. Covid only kind of accelerated the process and the speed of it. This digital shift might have happened after 5 years, but it happened sooner,” he tells us.

Dhulia says he has always been a firm believer in the power of the web space. “I have been saying this for the past 15 years that only big films will work in cinemas. The films of (actors) Salman Khan, Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgn, Aamir Khan are big screen experiences. But the problem is these stars do very limited number of films. So now it is up to the audience to decide whether they want to go to cinemas and watch all kinds of films,” he adds.

“The nearest cinema from my house is just 7 minutes but I still don’t go and watch all films. My reasons are different because I think with all the eating and everything, it is not a peaceful process anymore. Also, we have to understand that the ticket rates are very high, mehengaai bahut hai iss desh mein I don’t think everybody cannot afford to spend ₹2000 and over for every movie outing,” he ends.