Farah Khan: Big fat Bollywood entertainers will get people back into theatres

Only the return of big Bollywood entertainers will make the revival of big screen possible and a successful affair after the lull induced by the pandemic, feels filmmaker Farah Khan.

“When people come out of the pandemic and go to the theatre, they’ll want to go to watch a big ticket entertaining film because everything else I’m getting to watch while I sit in my bedroom,” Khan continues, “So, if I’m going to take time out of my life, wear a mask and get into a theatre with other people, it better be paisa vasool entertainment.”

According to the choreographer-filmmaker, the “big fat entertainers” will definitely come back for the theatre goers.

“Because I’m happily watching small and medium films on the OTT platforms, and I’m loving that. But the big feel and experience I want to watch on the big screen. I may go to the big screen only to experience that,” admits the 56-year-old.

To support her hunch, she goes on to point out the success story of Hollywood films such as Godzilla vs. Kong and Wonder Woman 1984, which released earlier this year.

“They worked because that’s something you want to go and watch on the big screen. At least initially, when there will be a little trepidation and hesitation, you’ll want to go to watch a big fat Bollywood entertainment,” Khan tells us.

Talking of opening revelry and hoopla of Bollywood on the big screen, she has mastered the art, with films such as Main Hoon Na (2004), Om Shanti Om (2007), and Happy New Year (2014) being the case in point. So, when can we expect her next project?

“I’ve learnt that it is better to announce when the project starts its first day of the shoot. There are so many times when the press leaks it out when you’re just thinking about it,” says the filmmaker, currently judging a virtual talent-hunt reality show.

She adds that she gets shocked “when people announce details about her project at a time when there’s no clarity on what will happen next” in life.

Meanwhile, she’s glad that she’s able to work amid the pandemic as a judge of reality show, #MadeOnRoposo.

“For the last almost eight years, I’ve been literally judging every contest on TV. And this is an extension of that, which is driving social media content. It’s the way the world is right now with everything being on your phone,” she concludes.