Great time, great mix, says Bhandarkar

Renowned filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar was at the 50th edition of IFFI for a masterclass moderated by film critic Taran Adarsh.

Showtime asked him about the festival, his favourite movies and more.

When you visit film festivals, do you see Indian cinema reaching the standard of world cinema?
Definitely. Slowly it is growing, gradually we will be there. I am happy about the 50th year of IFFI. It is a mix of different kinds of cinema in different languages. It has been a great blend.

One of your influences, Mrinal Sen, passed away last year. Do you see young filmmakers approaching that quality of filmmaking?
I feel that Mrinal da, Ray saheb, Ritwik Ghatak have done tremendous amount of great work in their careers. Their films have had a great influence not only in India, but globally. There are some good talents who are making different kinds of cinema, different kinds of subjects. I am happy there is a lot of concept-driven cinema. Today, social media is a big thing. I was saying in the masterclass that there are several avenues and platforms where filmmakers can explore the kind of films they want to do.

Any notable names from the younger generation that you would like to mention?
There are many, not one or two. I really, really appreciate ‘Bala’. It was a good film. Then ‘Andhadhun’ by Sriram Raghavan... I am a huge admirer of his work.

You are known for social realist films. Is there a lighter brand of cinema that you enjoy?
I love different kinds of cinema. I am a film buff. I watch comedy, I watch content on digital platforms. I recently watched ‘Half Ticket’ by Kishore Kumar. I watch Woody Allen films. I watch everything, from Peter Sellers to Rajinikanth.