Boney Kapoor said the barrier “isn’t the language” but “what’s good and what’s bad” and what people “digest” whether it’s Telugu or Tamil or Malayalam film.
A war of words took place between producers Boney Kapoor and Naga Vamsi. The duo was part of the producers’ roundtable by Galatta Plus, and Boney talked about how films in south India do overseas. Boney shared that while “Telugu films have a unique market in the US, Tamil films have a unique market in Singapore and Malaysia”, adding that, “Gulf, of course, is a Cosmopolitan area”. To this, Naga Vamsi said that Gulf has a “huge market” for Malayalam films.
Naga Vamsi says South Indians changed outlook towards films
He then added, “One thing, sir, you have to accept this. It might sound really harsh. We, South Indians, have changed the way you [Bollywood] look at cinema. Because, you guys [Bollywood], were stuck in making films for Bandra and Juhu. You witnessed a change with Baahubali, RRR, Animal and Jawan.”
Boney disagrees, talks about Allu Arjun
Shaking his head, Boney said Naga Vamsi was “wrong there”. Naga Vamsi interrupted, pointing out that while talking about films, Boney named Baahubali and RRR (Telugu films) after “historical” Mughal-E-Azam but “never mentioned a Hindi film”.
Boney replied, “In this forum, we can’t be talking about every bit of knowledge we know. We need to talk in broader terms. When I say Mughal-E-Azam, Baahubali and all that, it’s not that I’ve missed out on other films. I know those films. At the tip of my fingers, I can rattle out those names. But, it’s nothing like Telugu cinema has taught Indians. I don’t believe that. It was always there. Even the hero (Allu Arjun) of Pushpa 2 said that he is a big fan of Amitabh Bachchan. He could have said that he was a big fan of NT Rama Rao.”
Boney talks about barrier
Boney added that the barrier “isn’t the language” but “what’s good and what’s bad” and what people “digest” whether it’s Telugu or Tamil or Malayalam or Bengali cinema. Naga Vamsi again said that in recent times, films which have done “huge business in Hindi”, Baahubali, RRR, KGF 2, Kalki 2898 AD, and Pushpa 2: The Rule have been made by Telugu directors. Boney then said Naga Vamsi is “forgetting” about Hum Aapke Hain Koun, Gadar and Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge.
About Naga Vamsi and Boney’s films
Naga Vamsi has produced films such as Bheemla Nayak and Rang De (2022). He also co-produced Jersey (2022) and Tillu Square, Lucky Baskhar and Gangs of Godavari this year.
Boney has produced movies including Woh Saat Din (1983), Mr India (1987), Roop Ki Rani Choron Ka Raja (1993), Judaai (1997), Hamara Dil Aapke Paas Hai (2000), No Entry (2005), Mom (2017), and Maidaan (2024).
