Maverick
director
Ram
Gopal
Varma
gives
a
break
to
horror
and
underworld
tales
and
takes
a
potshot
at
media
and
its
sensationalism
in
his
latest
flick
'Rann".
The
film
has
already
run
into
controversy
for
numerous
reasons,
one
of
them
being
the
apparent
mockery
of
the
National
Anthem
in
the
theme
song,
which
was
later
shelved
after
the
outrage
it
created.
Having
started
his
career
with
the
Telugu
film
'Shiva";
RGV
cemented
his
position
in
Bollywood
with
the
film
'Rangeela".
Thereafter
he
made
several
films
based
on
underworld
and
horror
theme,
which
made
him
a
household
name.
Though
his
journey
has
been
checkered
with
hits
and
flops,
but
RGV"s
passion
for
films
never
paled
and
he
constantly
made
the
cinema
of
his
choice.
In
a
conversation
he
expounds
on
what
made
him
make
a
film
on
media.
What
was
the
basic
idea
behind
making
Rann?
(Laughs)
I
wanted
to
expose
the
media.
But
that
necessarily
doesn"t
mean
in
a
bad
light
but
everything
that"s
unknown
to
people
about
media.
And
I
think
television
today
rules
as
it"s
like
a
member
of
your
family.
It
tells
you
and
guides
you
on
what
to
do
and
what
not
to.
Therefore
I
wanted
to
show
the
viewers
on
what
happens
behind
the
scenes
in
the
media
arena.
So,
are
you
portraying
the
drawbacks
of
media
in
this
film?
I
think
that
would
be
incorrect
to
say.
It"s
not
about
showing
filthy
stuff
of
media
but
it"s
about
media
as
a
system
and
how
it
manages
to
hook
the
audience
in
matter
of
just
minutes.
It"s
about
the
people,
technology
and
the
psychology
of
the
people
associated
with
it.
But
media
has
always
been
there,
so
how
relevant
is
the
argument
that
media
has
hooked
the
audience
of
today?
I
think
it"s
very
relevant
of
today"s
time.
I
will
give
you
an
example,
recently,
one
television
channel
down
south
aired
the
news
that
Mukesh
Ambani
is
responsible
for
YSR
Reddy"s
death,
which
led
to
the
destruction
of
all
the
properties
of
Mukesh
Ambani
in
South.
The
news
was
flashed
in
such
a
way
that
you
tend
to
believe
on
such
news
which
is
wrong
on
part
of
media.
Moreover,
I
think
remote
control
is
a
biggest
enemy
as
it
allows
the
viewers
full
freedom
to
switch
on
to
other
News
channel
in
no
time
which
enforces
media
to
grab
the
attention
of
viewers
in
5
sec,
which
is
not
fair.
So
what
according
to
you
are
the
pros
and
cons
of
the
media?
The
pros
of
media,
I
think,
is
that
it"s
entertaining,
informative,
exposing
irregularities
and
changing
the
world
view
and
cons
would
be
the
vice
versa.
Like
for
instance,
it
gives
information
but
sometimes
it
gives
false
information
as
well…
like
the
news
of
Mukesh
Ambani
being
responsible
for
YSR
Reddy"s
death
which
was
wrongly
informed
and
mislead
audience.
Do
you
feel
that
commercialization
is
forcing
media
to
turn
irresponsible?
I
don"t
mean
anything
because
it"s
there
in
front
of
everyone.
Moreover,
when
you
run
any
channel
there
are
lot
of
things
to
be
managed
right
from
the
infrastructure,
salaries
are
to
be
paid
and
the
responsibility
of
the
people
who
work
with
you
plus
media
supreme
want
their
channel
to
be
called
number
1.
So,
to
make
that
happen,
media
has
to
be
by
default
turn
that
way
because
they
have
no
option
left
and
if
they
don"t
do
so
their
shop
will
be
shut.
For
instance
during
Kargil
war,
Vivek
Oberoi
and
Salman
Khan
controversy
happened
which
was
prioritized
on
all
the
channels
and
Kargil
war
disappeared
in
the
melee.
Are
you
trying
to
tell
that
people
are
responsible
for
this?
I"m
not
saying
that,
as
I
feel
people
hardly
have
any
time
from
their
personal
lives
to
ponder
much
on
these
things
so
I
don"t
blame
them.
To
quote
a
line
from
my
film-
'by
virtue
of
its
nature
it
has
no
choice
but
to
become
corrupt" explains
everything.
Since
you
have
announced
this
movie,
there
have
been
constant
talks
that
you
are
making
this
film
just
to
take
revenge
from
media;
did
you
get
any
threats
from
media?
I
have
been
getting
a
few
threats
from
some
media
houses
but
that"s
not
going
to
stop
my
movie
from
being
screened
in
theaters.
Some
newspapers
have
mentioned
that
Ram
Gopal
Varma
'Media
Ki
Khili
Udda
Rahain
hai" and
some
were
saying
Ramu
media
ke
upper
Khunas
Nikaal
Rahian
Hai.
Some
are
openly
threatening.
Have
you
drawn
any
references
from
real
life
and
have
included
the
same
in
the
film?
When
you
are
making
a
film
on
real
life
it
is
bound
to
have
real
life
references,
but
that
doesn"t
mean
we
have
taken
that
as
it
is.
If
you
take
the
media
reports
of
the
past
year
you
will
find
the
same
sort
of
stories
only
characters
change,
but
the
essence
remains
the
same.
For
instance,
Jessica
Lal
changes
to
Arushika
and
so
on…So;
yes
I"ve
included
some
incidents
from
the
real
life
but
which
ones
that
I
can"t
reveal.
Your
movie
'Rann"
only
explores
the
electronic
media
why
this
specification?
It"s
because
the
dynamics
of
electronic
media
are
different
from
the
other
media,
as
it
can
play
with
the
emotions
of
people.
Print
on
the
other
hand
cannot
do
that
even
if
it
wants
to.
What
kind
of
research
went
for
this
film?
My
research
was
primarily
based
on
my
television;
I
scan
the
news
carefully
and
critically
every
time
I
watch
television.
Which
actor
according
to
you
has
brought
the
character
alive
on
screen?
Everyone
has
performed
well
in
the
film,
but
I
think
Sudeep
has
brought
the
character
I
have
written
for
him
alive
on-screen.
So
what
next
after
'Rann"?
I"m
working
on
a
concept
for
something
on
underworld;
you
will
get
to
know
everything
that
needs
to
be
known
very
soon.