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00:00Politics is new to me. I came into politics. I call myself a neo-politiculturist. I'll start with myself. I'll culture myself. My intent has never been to quickly decry something. I'll try to understand what it is about and then disagree.
00:18Hi, everyone. This is Manjusha Radhakrishnan. I'm the entertainment editor, Gulf News. Today, we have the pleasure and our absolute privilege to interview Mr. Kamal Hassan, who's a Tamilian icon and also a politician. Thank you so much for coming to Dubai with your Eid release. I think Eid came early for us because thug life seems to really rock.
00:38I'm happy you're saying that and we're looking forward to more rock and roll, hopefully.
00:45Of course. And you're one actor that has rolled with the times. I think you're the king of reinvention. Can I just tell you? Because I saw you in thug life and everybody in my office was like, man, he looks good. So is that what you want to also? I mean, you want to reinvent with each and every role you take on.
01:01Yeah, basically my qualification does not come from intramural university. It comes from outside. My only qualification in cinema, I didn't go to film institute.
01:18I'm a child of cinema. Above all, I'm a cinema buff. So I want exactly what an audience wants, to see different stuff. I want to see the same kind of film all the time.
01:36That is people who take cinema. For people who are really cinema buffs, they'll see every kind, but it must have a sensibility. It must have a, uh, what do you call it? Trend setting quality to it.
01:53And that makes me very happy. And we are trying to emulate that. And, uh, uh, mostly Mr. Money and I would say, we must make the film that we would like to see.
02:07Sure. Then comes, we'd like people to see what we like. That's the second part. First, we come with a passion as film buffs from one among you to make the kind of films that we really want people to enjoy and celebrate.
02:26Of course. And it's so interesting that you say that because we don't know what we want. I'm telling you as a, as a audience that often I'm surprised by the things I like.
02:36Are you as a artist as well equally, you know, flabbergasted by what is working and what's not? No, I'm not. I accept the world with all kinds of, I'm not racial. I don't believe in the caste system.
02:51I've lost my gods because there are so many of them that it creates tension in the world. So I'm shedding all those which will make a pleasant stay in the earth.
03:03That's true. And with Mani Ratnam, we have to talk about your collaboration. I think you both guys are match made in heaven.
03:09I think you take your craft so seriously. So does he, but you all don't take yourself so seriously. Is that the common thread between you two? The commonality?
03:18Yeah. This was all made on earth. So don't give it a celestial quality because we were friends. We found each other because of similar. We are think alike. And now we are technicians who are alike.
03:36And film buffs who are alike. That's all. There are certain things that he will not like, but I like. And I will not like, but he likes. These differences should be there.
03:47Right. And that's the reason why we are attracted to each other because he'll say that when he is very humorous mind wise, but he will not make a humorous film.
03:59Not because of diffidence. Probably doesn't want to. Of course. I look at Thug Life and I look at the gangster dramas.
04:07There are a dime a dozen now with Narcos. Everything you look at. How do you think this works? Like in terms of just violence, etc. Did you ask them like now more is more?
04:19Give the audience what they want. Do you think you should? Did you tell them to dial it up or dial it down?
04:25I have made films. I have been even accused of being a filmmaker who celebrates violence. That's not true at all. That's like diverting my journey with the dedication that I'm moving forward. You're diverting me.
04:49I am against violence. My biggest hero in the world is not Alexander Napoleon or any such land amassing soldiers.
05:01My biggest hero is an ordinary son of a diwan called Mr. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. He is my hero. And why I make violent films?
05:14Because my Bapu died of violence. I know that nobody can escape that violence. Even a man who's talking about non-violence and I answer.
05:28So I have a personal commitment. It's my country's tragedy and it's a personal family tragedy for me. Because I think of it as my Bapuji.
05:42I love that. I love that. I love that. So I will not make a film that will have a positive impact and want people to emulate this. They will see in all my films. Be it Tevramagan, Hey Ram, Viramandi. The futility of violence keeps coming back. That's why I make it shadow worthy.
06:08Not applause worthy. That's interesting. It is not gratitude to us then. That's the whole point.
06:14I'm not like sugar coating it. It's as bitter and as salty as blood.
06:21Right. Last question. Do you think art should be politicized at all? In the era that we live in where everybody is woke, everybody has a take. Do you think artists should be or art should be politicized?
06:33They will. They will. How you duck under this nasty foul blows. There's no rules in that game. Whereas I have a rule in my game that I play cinema. Politics is new to me. I came into politics. I call myself a neo-political journalist.
06:55I'll start with myself. I'll culture myself and set an example. That's why I came in. And so I do understand people have. My intent has never been to quickly decry something. I'll try to understand what it is about and then disagree.
07:17I love it. I love it. I love it. You have led your life by example. I think that's your biggest legacy as well. You have never, I feel as a public figure, we emulate you.
07:27But you have never backed down. And that's what I think. It's not easy living with principles in today's times, is it?
07:32No. I think I have great examples like Gandhiji. At that time, he must have looked like a fool for saying whatever. He said he didn't care. He had education enough to know.
07:45He didn't have to look into the mirror to check whether what his critics are talking about him is true.
07:52He knows. He has an inner mirror that reflects his country and its plight.
07:58So he acted accordingly. And he was ready to lay down the luxuries of life.
08:06I'm here to do it. I still enjoy life. And, but we can still do it in this area of the tools of, I wish, like there's a great opera by Andrew Lloyd Webber.
08:25And journalists are questioning Jesus Christ. And they're asking, do you think mass communication would have helped you better to become a star sooner?
08:34True that. Social media wasn't there.
08:38So we have better tools than what Gandhiji had. At our disposal. At our disposal. So I don't have to do so much of sacrifice like him. Poor man. He had to set an example.
08:51So he literally punished himself to do it. I think I'll be even more kind. I think Ahinsa is non-violence unto yourself also.
09:03Right. But Gandhiji didn't mind being very violent with himself.
09:08Are you brutal with yourself? I think so. But I, he had to get the valour that he has. I admire him for that.
09:17On that note, thank you so much for entertaining us with one great movie at a time. It's critic proof almost. I don't think I should, we should be reviewing the movie. I think it's beyond that criticism.
09:27We won't, we won't, we won't arrogate ourselves that much. We expect criticism, but that's always there.
09:36I think Capullo's film was, they had to fight so many hurdles, including the mafia who wanted the film banned.
09:45Right. It's one thing for the government to say, ban it. But mafia saying that is very frightening. It's his own countrymen.
09:55They didn't want it to know.
09:57Capullo is an Italian descent. American though, but his roots are actually somewhere close to Corleone.
10:08So yeah, he made it happen Godfather. Do you think Thug Life is going to be the new Godfather?
10:13No. Say it. It's okay. Be modest. Come on. It's a, it's a, it's a, it's a genre. We don't want to make a new Godfather.
10:21Okay. So it's, it's, it's something new, which we have tried. And in this genre, and we, we are looking at lives of thugs.
10:32That's all this film is about. And that's a point of view where you see, we are not advocating a way of thugs way, but he has a life.
10:50See what happens when you choose that as a profession. There are certain, like, we don't encourage everyone to come into cinema.
10:58We always tell them, please train is lethal because you're playing with culture. It's a leader for the country.
11:06Then it's lethal for you because you think that all this glory and thing is a lottery. It is not.
11:15It's not a lottery. It's not a stroke of luck.
11:18No, it's not. They'll take it back. Your ticket will be taken back. Your number will be announced, but they think this man will just gamble and throw it away.
11:27They'll take it back. There's no rule like that in other lotteries. Here, they'll take it back.
11:32Fair enough. This is one ticket that I'll always bet on. Kamal Hassan, thank you so much for entertaining us.
11:38And let me just tell you that he's a terrific looking, terrifying thug. So well done you. I can't wait to watch it during Eid this season.
11:45Thank you. Thank you.
11:46Thank you. Peace be long.
11:47Thank you so much.
11:48Thank you so much.
11:50Bye.
11:52Bye.