I ended up making films for “wrong reasons” : RGV regrets

By DASI PURNA KARTHIK

On 20 Jan 2025 18:03:26

I ended up making films for “wrong reasons” : RGV regrets

• Betrayed my own genius after Satya and Rangeela

Renowned filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma, reflecting on his journey in cinema, expressed deep regret over how the monumental success of his earlier works, Rangeela and Satya, blinded him to the true essence of filmmaking. In a candid post shared on his social media, the 62-year-old director acknowledged that he had lost his focus, betraying the trust of those who believed in him. It’s been 26 years since Satya reshaped the landscape of Indian cinema.

At 33, Varma had delivered the iconic Rangeela, and by 36, Satya became a cult classic. But success, he confesses, clouded his judgment. The director, known for films like Jungle, Company, and the horror hit Bhoot, admits that the overwhelming achievements of these projects took him down a path of arrogance, ultimately leading to a series of films that sought shock value rather than true artistic merit.

"I became drunk on my own success," Varma shared. "The bright lights of Rangeela and Satya blinded me. I lost my vision and ended up making films for the wrong reasons — to showcase technical wizardry, gimmicks, and shock value." In an emotional post reflecting on Satya’s re-release, Varma said that watching the film again after so many years brought him to tears.

"I wasn’t just crying for the film," he wrote, "but for what I became after making it. I failed to realize the significance of what I had created." Varma revealed that the success of Satya should have been a turning point, a benchmark for his future work. Instead, he got lost in his own success, neglecting the very vision that led him to create something revolutionary.

“I forgot to appreciate the garden I had planted beneath my feet, and that led to my various falls from grace,” he said. He expressed regret over the films he made afterward, admitting that if he had revisited Satya before embarking on each new project, many of them might never have been made.

"I wish I had followed this simple rule — watch Satya before making any film. It would have saved me from myself," he confessed. In his reflective moment, Varma promised to realign his filmmaking philosophy moving forward, with a renewed reverence for why he became a director in the first place.

"From now on, my films will be made with a deep respect for the art of filmmaking," he vowed, concluding his post with a solemn pledge: "I swear on Satya that I will spend whatever time I have left creating something worthy of it."