Quotes of All Topics . Occasions . Authors
The equality of men and women is not possible because both are different. A mountain is a mountain, and a river is a river.
The first thing I do after I wake up is switch on the music player and the last thing I do before going to sleep is stop it.
A man is not capable of giving the way a woman gives. She is stronger. When a woman sacrifices, it lends her grace and beauty.
I was criticised for making 'Devdas' so ostentatious. But stark and realistic cinema isn't the only real cinema in this country.
I can't begin to describe how humiliating it is for a law-abiding citizen to be cross-examined in a court of law for a crime he hasn't committed.
People don't want to always see a comedy or an action film. If the film in a particular genre is made well, then it will see its share of success.
I have always chosen subjects which are little different, and not subjects that you see. That challenges me and the actors who work in the project.
Shah Rukh made 'Devdas' for me, and I made it for him. He's special to me, and I think I am special for him. We are and will always be good friends.
People might think that I'm inaccessible, unapproachable, and dark. In many ways, my characters are uncomfortable to interact with, but that's not me.
I am not indulgent. I think constructing a scene elaborately - with art, costume, and visual drama - is not indulgence. Other people should do it, too.
'Devdas' is the first Hindi commercial film to be seen at Cannes. And 'Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam' is getting a whole lot of appreciation abroad. I'm pleased.
I have grown up watching films in single screens where people would get up and dance in the aisles. With 'Rowdy Rathore,' I want to recreate the same magic.
'Devdas' isn't a real film. It isn't in the same genre as Mira Nair's 'Monsoon Wedding,' where the camera's presence is so understated it almost disappears.
When you don't have to say 'I love you,' when you don't have to prove your love by singing a song, or express it through the body, that's two souls connecting.
I'm petrified of facing the camera. Even to shoot for a photograph is an ordeal. But it's important to break free of your inhibitions at some point in your life.
The first film that I saw of Shammi Kapoor was 'Bhramachari.' I instantly fell in love with the film and connected with Shammiji. His style was natural and unique.
Every director, actor, and even producer gets angry on the sets. Why am I the only one being singled out for losing my cool or being talked about vis-a-vis my anger?
I just wish one of the big American studios had bought 'Devdas.' They would have pitched the film for the Oscars in a big way, like Miramax did with the Chinese film 'Hero.'
When I make a film about a physically challenged person, I come away with so much. I learn to value what I have. My survival instinct sharpened after 'Black' and 'Guzaarish.'
It is absolutely important to balance stars with newcomers so the whole chemistry and ambience between people who have never worked before becomes far more explosive and exciting.
What upset me was that after 'Saawariya,' which came after the awards and rewards of 'Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam,' 'Devdas' and 'Black,' I was written off, almost hounded out of the industry.
The media should be ready to cover every event at the Oberois' residence. If Vivek's dog has dysentery tomorrow, we should be prepared to hear Vivek talk about it on camera for three hours.
The Cannes Film Festival is the biggest, most prestigious film festival in the world. This is where filmmakers are discovered, where futures are made, and the most important films premiered.
Did Robert De Niro actually look like Al Capone in 'The Untouchables?' Or did Van Kilmer look like Jim Morrison in 'The Doors?' No. It's the core, the essence of the personality that matters.
There is no such thing as human perfection, and yet when you hear Lataji sing, you wonder how she sang that song so beautifully, so perfectly. Or, how Kumar Gandharva touched your soul so powerfully.
It is very difficult for anyone to predict how a film will do. It depends on so many things: the mood of the audience, the state of their mind at the time, how they have reacted to the whole treatment.
During our childhood, my sister and I had no birthday parties. We would take a packet of sweets to school and distribute it to our class-mates. That was it. We were not allowed to go to parties, either.
I don't think international cinema is ready to embrace mainstream Indian cinema unconditionally. Even Mira Nair's 'Monsoon Wedding' didn't get to the Oscars after being nominated for the Golden Globe Awards.
Some of the most beautiful people, to me, are those with the wrong geometry. Mother Teresa is extremely beautiful and not because she is a saint. Her characteristics are very strange, and that is what generates the power she had.
Of course, an Oscar nomination would have added considerably to the film's business abroad. But it has already made nearly Rs 150 crore. It has done stupendous business overseas. We did a business of Rs 80 crore when we took 'Devdas' to Cannes.
I think caring too much about the economics starts affecting the creative aspect of the film. That is a dangerous process for a filmmaker. He should make his film without having to worry about how much it has cost or how much it will be sold for.
What's life without risks? When I made 'Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam,' everybody said in India you can never have a husband say that I am uniting my wife with her lover. The male audience would reject it, and it is a male audience and hero-oriented industry.
I don't think the physical resemblance is as important as capturing the soul of the person that the actor is portraying. How much like Charlie Chaplin did Robert Downey Jr. look in 'Chaplin?' Did Meryl Steep actually resemble Nora Ephron in 'Heartburn?'
I am extremely proud that our cinema is being recognised in the West. I want Indian cinema to get its dignity, not by giving them the kind of films they expect from us, but by making cinema in a way that carries the legacy of the mainstream masters forward.
My 'Devdas' was a tribute to all the mainstream masters, from Mehboob Khan, K. Asif, and V. Shantaram to Raj Kapoor. I am not saying critics shouldn't have criticised my film. But they should have judged the film within the genre and format that I had chosen.
Show me one director who does not get angry on their assistant for something that has gone wrong. But it is done out of my love. It's just fun when I tell them to face a wall and stand or kneel down in a corner. It's not like I want to punish them harshly. It's not to humiliate; it is to teach.