'I'm too thick skinned to care for criticism'
He might have faced enough brickbats for his super-flop Ram Gopal Varma Ki Aag, filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma refuses to give up. The filmmaker is back with yet another underworld drama, Contract, releasing today. CNN-IBN's Iram Mirza quizzed him on his fascination with the underworld.
CNN-IBN: First we had Satya, then it was Company and now it is underworld meets terrorism in Contract. What is your fixation with underworld?
Ram Gopal Varma: I basically have an affinity to dark subjects in terms of larger-than-life issues and if Company dealt with an organisation of gangsters, Contract deals with a new concept that is an alliance of terrorism and underworld.
CNN-IBN: There are about 40 new faces in this film. What is your fascination of working with new comers and making a star out of those fresh faces?
Ram Gopal Varma: When you see a new person, you take him or her for a character. They usually don't carry baggages developed over time. Aadhvik Mahajan is playing the protagonist. He has a very strong blend of vulnerability with intensity, which is what I was looking for the character.
CNN-IBN: Sarkar Raj got a lot of critical acclaim. Was it a relief after Ram Gopal Varma Ki Aag?
Ram Gopal Varma: I am too used to criticism over 18 years of my career. Ram Gopal Varma Ki Aag was special because it had a baggage of Sholay. It was not the first flop I made or it was not the last flop I would have made.
CNN-IBN: You tend to remain unfazed by all the criticism. Has something changed in Ram Gopal Varma after all this criticism?
Ram Gopal Varma: No. I think I am too thick skinned.
With due respect to rgv - his some of his recent movies are just too imaginative