Ramesh Sippy Says Sholay Was A Pan-India Film In A Sense That It Appealed To Whole India

Filmmaker Ramesh Sippy who is well-known for giving India the iconic film Sholay, shared his take on pan-India films and said that India has become global, as the youngsters are experiencing new cultures and learning new things.

When asked if he considers Sholay as a pan-India film, he told Hindustan Times, "If it means appealing to a wide audience, then yes. It was pan-Indian in sense that it appealed to the whole of India."

He further said, "Today, India is also global. Our youngsters have gone out, experienced new cultures and learnt new things. So, today they are making films that appeal to large parts of audience in the country. They are dubbed in other languages in the country and they are being quite successful too."

While the last few years saw films like Baahubali, RRR, Pushpa, KGF, etc., setting box office on fire, Sippy feels one can still make smaller and specialised films, because there is an audience for everything. He said that one can have a little story set in a little village or a grand story with a large reach, but it needs to have the content in the end. If that works, the film works.

Speaking about how Bollywood has changed in the last five decades, Sippy said that what the industry was fifty years back and what it is today is a different ball game.

"We not only continue to have films and television but now there is OTT as well. It is endless today, the kind of opportunities people have. I watch a lot of work in the long format, both the Indian and Western shows. I keep acquainting myself with that. As a production house, we are into OTT. But as an individual, I haven't yet found something worth doing. The moment I find something interesting and exciting, I might just direct it myself," concluded the filmmaker.