Shaapit
has
turned
out
to
be
a
decent
earner
at
the
box
office.
A
safe
investment,
though
a
mind
blowing
opening
was
never
expected
out
of
it,
a
decent
fare
was
pretty
much
on
the
cards,
hence
turning
this
Vikram
Bhatt
directed
film
into
a
plus
affair.
As
his
horror
trilogy
(after
Raaz
and
1920)
comes
to
a
conclusion,
Bhatt
looks
at
the
difference
in
the
way
horror
films
are
treated
in
Bollywood
v/s
rest
of
the
world.
"In
India,
we
are
required
to
make
far
more
fuller
films
when
it
comes
to
horror",
says
Vikram
Bhatt
who
is
sure
about
'selling
fear'
in
each
of
his
films
to
come,
"You
need
to
have
a
love
story,
great
music,
good
locations,
the
works.
Look
at
films
like
Woh
Kaun
Thi,
Bees
Saal
Baad
or
Kohra
from
the
past
-
you
always
need
to
do
a
lot
more.
Our
films
come
from
this
lineage;
this
is
where
we
got
out
horror
germ
from.
Audience
look
for
'our'
kind
of
films.
We
don't
come
from
Ringu
and
Grudge
lineage."
It
is
also
often
said
that
horror
is
the
safest
bet
of
all
amongst
all
genres
since
it
can
be
made
'cheap'.
"The
term
'cheap'
would
be
too
harsh.
In
fact
horror
should
not
be
treated
as
a
cheap
shot",
protests
Bhatt,
"The
bare
minimum
requirement
is
to
have
a
production
value,
some
nice
songs
and
dances
and
overall
a
milieu
which
is
scary.
Now
that
is
immensely
tougher
because
you
have
to
rely
upon
nothing
but
visuals
here."
Still,
one
can't
deny
the
fact
that
there
is
a
lot
of
cost
saving
involved
due
to
new
faces
that
can
be
roped
in
for
a
horror
tale.
After
all
the
star
of
the
show
is
invariably
the
director
and
if
he
comes
with
good
enough
skill
sets,
the
new
actors
(if
reasonably
talented)
can
pull
through
the
film.
"Well
yes,
it
is
true
that
in
horror
films,
it
is
the
director
who
is
the
star",
says
Vikram,
"In
fact
that's
a
trend
across
the
world
where
most
of
the
horror
classics
too
haven't
quite
boasted
of
big
actors.
Have
you
ever
heard
of
a
Tom
Cruise
or
an
Arnold
or
a
Stallone
in
a
horror
film?
Having
said
that,
the
fact
cannot
be
denied
is
that
some
of
the
talent
which
is
launched
in
horror
films
goes
on
to
be
much
bigger
in
films
to
come."
Narrating
a
few
examples,
Vikram
consolidates
his
point,
"Look
at
films
like
Final
Destination
or
Paranormal
Activity.
Now
who
has
seen
these
actors
earlier?
See,
fear
sells
on
its
own,
but
you
have
to
work
equally
hard
to
get
your
product
noticed."
After
1920
and
Shaapit,
is
Vikram
chartering
a
set
route
where
he
would
be
working
primarily
with
newcomers?
Has
he
lost
the
appetite
of
working
with
stars?
"Well,
that's
not
the
entire
truth
actually",
says
Vikram
after
a
brief
pause,
"I
do
believe
that
there
are
some
films
that
cannot
be
made
without
stars.
But
then
the
bitter
truth
is
that
those
who
are
available
are
not
saleable
and
while
the
ones
who
are
saleable
are
not
available.
In
such
a
case,
the
best
choice
for
a
filmmaker
is
to
make
him
a
brand
name.
As
far
as
horror
films
are
concerned,
I
guess
Vikram
Bhatt
is
a
brand
name.
Now
as
long
as
I
have
that
core
competence,
I
don't
need
a
star."
Story first published: Friday, March 26, 2010, 15:04 [IST]