Prakash Jha cuts down Aarakshan to 2 hours 15 minutes

 

The era of lengthy epic tales with two intervals, one siesta-break and three meals are over. Filmmakers are now being forced to restrict their completed product's playing-time to 2 hours or less.

Prakash Jha cuts down Aarakshan to 2 hours 15 minutes

 

Prakash Jha who gave one of the biggest hits of 2010, Raajneeti, has been granted a 15 minute grace-period, considering his box office standing. Nonetheless, Prakash too has been forced to comply by what Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra describes as the "multiplex samosa-sales pitch."

 

After the 2 hour 47 minute marathon Raajneeti, Prakash Jha has been compelled to cut down the length of his new film Aarakshan to a much shorter playing-time of 2 hour 15 minutes.

 

Sighs the harried filmmaker, 'It is the demand of the times...and of time. You can't afford to make your film longer than a certain length. It hampers the number of screenings in the multiplexes and restricts viewership as well. Though I must add that the audience will be with you for as long as you want if the story is gripping."

 

To make the playing-time of Aarakshan gripping, Prakash Jha has ruthlessly cut down the length. "Yes, I have kept the length down to the minimum. Nowadays a filmmaker can't afford to be emotional about the footage that he shoots. What had to go is gone in Aarakshan. I don't make a film only for my own satisfaction. I've to keep many considerations in mind."

 

It's learnt that some of dramatic and emotional sequences featuring the Big B with Saif and Deepika Padukone had to go for the sake of brevity. Ideally, Prakash would have liked Aarakshan to have much more playing-time. "It's a complex story. I talk about the reservation issue that goes back to Rig Veda and then right up to Jayaprakash Narayan's student movement in the 1960s. A lot of back-projection was required."

 

With the length being cut down to an austere 2 hours and 15 mins, the film has to sacrifice the explanatory history.

Catch us for latest Bollywood News, New Bollywood Movies update, Box office collection,New Movies Release, Bollywood News Hindi, Entertainment News, Bollywood News Today & upcoming movies 2024 and stay updated with latest hindi movies only on Bollywood Hungama.