‘Hrithik Roshan, Vidya Balan changed after success': Vidhu Vinod Chopra says, ‘Spine is connected to bank balance'

Indian Express

2 days ago

Filmmaker Vidhu Vinod Chopra is one of the most successful people in Hindi cinema, having produced blockbusters such as Munna Bhai MBBS and 3 Idiots. Much like the protagonist of Munna Bhai, the movie that made him quite a wealthy man, Chopra doesn't mince his words when talking about Bollywood, and how the industry works. He recently talked about collaborating with many filmmakers and actors who went on to become big names, and commented on how success changes a human being.
During a Creator x Creator episode hosted by SCREEN, Chopra sat down with director Jaskunwar Kohli, who made the documentary Zero Se Restart, based on the making of Chopra's 12th Fail. Kohli wanted to know Chopra's philosophy behind hiring people to work for him and why he leans towards new faces and inexperienced talent. Chopra replied, 'There is more purity in new people, less corruption. Many people who assisted me have become great filmmakers today; when I meet them now, I can see the difference. When they worked with me, there was a certain purity. Unfortunately, if I cast a new face in my film and that one movie does well, it changes them.'
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While he didn't mention the name of any filmmakers, Chopra did name some actors who he thinks have changed since their position in the film industry has improved. 'Hrithik Roshan, Vidya Balan, and Boman Irani all did films with me at the start of their careers, and the list goes on. As they become successful, they change. That's why I like people who are nobodies, because once you become somebody, you don't remain the same person,' he said.
Chopra added that producers, directors, and actors don't care anymore about what they are creating, as long as it is selling well enough. He said, 'The people only care about the hits these days. No one has a vision, and no one wants to create for the joy of creating. They make one massive film with a Rs 400 cr0re box office collection, and suddenly they start walking differently.' Chopra even gave an example of this and told a story of a producer he used to work with and how his entire personality changed after one of his films found success.
'There was a producer who I knew, and he was always very polite while talking and had a soft demeanour. Suddenly one day, he meets me with his chest puffed and some weight in his voice. I asked him, 'Teri koi picture hit ho gayi (Did one of your films succeed)?' He said, 'Sir, you know everything; my film did succeed.' I told him that I had no idea that one of his films worked; all I knew was that his spine is connected to his bank balance, and that's why he was walking upright. These days the spine is always connected to the bank balance and not the quality of their work,' concluded Chopra.
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It's interesting to note that Chopra himself has been accused of changing as a person upon achieving success by Paresh Rawal, who turned down Munna Bhai for the same reason. He told The Lallantop, 'He is someone who started ignoring the people he started off with, especially after becoming big in his career. I was supposed to do Munna Bhai. We were discussing remuneration, and in my head, I wanted Rs 15 lakhs. Vidhu also offered the same number, but the way he said 'I'll give you 15' miffed me. I asked for Rs 50 lakhs, and decided to not budge from my want just to not take arrogance from anyone.'
In a past interaction, the filmmaker recalled when Sanjay Leela Bhansali was his assistant. Chatting with Bollywood Hungama, he said, 'Sanjay Bhansali, ab toh woh Sanjay Leela Bhansali hogaya hai. Woh mera assistant tha. MTV mein kuch award milne they 1942 ko direction ke liye, maine usko bola jaa le. Ab toh zor se chillata hai, tab toh ghabrate ghabrate award lene gaya tha (Sanjay Bhansali, who now goes by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, was my assistant. I won an award for 1942, and I sent him to collect it. He screams a lot these days, but back then, he was a meek guy).'Chopra's last film as a director was 12th Fail, starring Vikrant Massey, and the film received wide critical acclaim along with love from the general public.