Filmmaker Laxman Utekar, riding high on the box office success of Chhaava, has weighed in on Anurag Kashyap’s recent remarks about quitting Bollywood due to its “toxic” environment. In a candid conversation with Mama’s Couch, Utekar questioned Kashyap’s criticism of Hindi cinema and said filmmakers unhappy with the industry are free to leave.
Kashyap, known for films like Gangs of Wasseypur and Dev.D, had earlier told The Hindu that he is disillusioned with the Hindi film industry. “The industry has become too toxic. Everyone is chasing unrealistic targets, trying to make the next ₹500 or ₹800 crore film,” he had said, adding that he has moved out of Mumbai and is now working in South India.
Reacting to these statements, Utekar said, “Chale jao chod kar, beshak chale jao, jisko nahi rehna, chale jao… koi zabadasti nahi kar raha hai (Leave if you want to, no one is forcing you to stay). You can only make great films if you are mentally and creatively happy. If your heart isn’t in it, then it’s better you leave.”
The Chhaava director also took a sharp jab at Kashyap’s claim that the audience lacks the sensibility to appreciate his kind of cinema. “He is wrong when he says audiences don’t have the sensibility to understand his films. The truth is he lacks the sensibility to understand the audience’s taste,” Utekar stated.
Utekar cited the massive box office success of pan-India films like Baahubali, RRR, and Pushpa, as well as his own film Chhaava, which earned ₹807 crore worldwide, as proof that audiences are more than engaged. “How can you say cinema is dying? Look at the collections — ₹1200 crore, ₹1000 crore, ₹800 crore. If the audience is supporting these films, maybe it’s time some filmmakers adapt their sensibilities,” he added.
The director stressed that cinema is evolving rapidly and that every three years the audience’s taste changes. “If you’re stuck with the same formula and refuse to connect with middle- and lower-class viewers, your films will naturally fail. Don’t act like ‘gyanis’ — your job is to entertain,” he said, urging creators to remain grounded.
Utekar’s remarks have sparked a fresh debate about creative freedom, changing audience preferences, and the ongoing cultural divide between commercial cinema and niche storytelling in India.
Meanwhile, Chhaava, starring Vicky Kaushal as Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj, Rashmika Mandanna as Maharani Yasubai, and Akshaye Khanna as Aurangzeb, has emerged as the highest-grossing Bollywood film of the year.
Sources By Agencies
