Shekhar Kapur claims OTT streamer edited 'Bandit Queen' 'beyond recognition', without permission

Kapur asked whether OTT platforms would do the same with a film by Hollywood great Christopher Nolan.

New Delhi: Filmmaker Shekhar Kapur on Tuesday alleged that the streaming version of his 1994 film Bandit Queen is "unrecognisable" from the movie he originally directed and that it was edited without his permission.

The director, also known for films such as Masoom, Mr India, the Cate Blanchett-starrer period drama franchise Elizabeth, and What's Love Got to Do with It?, asked whether OTT platforms would do the same with a film by Hollywood great Christopher Nolan.

"The Bandit Queen on #AmazonPrime is unrecognisable from my film. Someone has cut it beyond recognition. And yet it carries my name as Director. And no one asked me! Are we lesser beings than Western Directors? Would they have the guts to cut a Chris Nolan film without his permission?" he wrote.

Critically acclaimed Bandit Queen revolved around the life of Phoolan Devi, the dreaded Chambal dacoit-turned-Member of Parliament. Actor Seema Biswas played the titular role in the film, which generated a massive worldwide buzz following its premiere in Directors' Fortnight section of the 1994 Cannes Film Festival.

The conversation started from Kapur's X post in which he praised mini-series Adolescence for its "next level" storytelling.

"I’m not the first one to say this but #Adolescence from #Netflix redefines what truly great series can achieve. Its defies the regular 3 act structure of cause and effect and plunges you deeply into the minds of the characters and allows you to reflect upon yourself... (sic)" he wrote on the microblogging site.

Fellow director Sudhir Mishra commented on Kapur's post, saying no one would let Indian filmmakers pursue a show like Adolescence.

Adolescence is a British crime drama which centres around a 13-year-old schoolboy Jamie Miller, who is arrested for the murder of a classmate. Each episode is shot in one take.

"One should do it as an independent film. Something of our own which is wanders, then stops, digs and goes where the smell takes us (sic)," added Mishra.

Kapur, in his response tagging Mishra, said he wonders if OTT platforms would let him make Bandit Queen the way he made years ago.

Hum Tum director Kunal Kohli, who directed Kapur's daughter Kaveri in Bobby Aur Rishi Ki Love Story, also weighed in on the issue.

"Today’s @shekharkapur with your Hollywood successes would be allowed to make it. But the ShekharKapur before Bandit Queen would definitely not be allowed by any OTT to make Bandit Queen the way he wants to. Cutting / Hacking your film without your permission is shocking to say the least," Kohli wrote in the comments section.