G5A Cinema House is all set to bring Mani Ratnam’s retrospective in Mumbai from January 24 to January 26. The three-day event will feature screenings of some of the most acclaimed films of the legendary filmmaker along with discussions on the same with people he has collaborated with over the decades. The event is curated by contemporary filmmakers Bejoy Nambiar and Nikkhil Advani, who themselves happen to be major fans of Ratnam.
In an exclusive chat with Bollywood Hungama, Nambiar said that it was through Advani that he got a chance to be a curator for the retrospective. “I have been following G5A’s work and attending their screenings,” he said. “In one of the screenings, I bumped into Nikkhil sir, who bounced this idea with me, and I just immediately jumped onto it. It’s actually been a dream of mine to try and do an interesting retrospective of Mani sir in Bombay. I told Nikkhil sir that I will do whatever it takes to make it happen. I have been wanting to do something like this for a very long time. A couple of years by, I came pretty close to doing it, but it never materialized.”
Speaking about the impact Mani Ratnam has had over the decades, Nambiar said, “Given his body of work and the array of movies he has done, his influence on so many filmmakers and artistes is something you cannot deny. Over the years, the kind of films he has done and so many of us have watched them and got inspired. I am one of the few who got inspired from his films and wanted to get into films. I wanted to make films because of the kind of films he makes.”
Nambiar pointed out that Ratnam is a rare filmmaker from his era who is still active. “He still challenges the medium a lot with the kind of films he is doing,” he said. “Along with the filmmakers he started off with, there are very rarely anyone who are still out there and making films. Barely anyone. Filmmakers have come and gone but he is still there. He is putting out his work with the same energy. That explains how his films are still relevant and how relevant he is as a filmmaker.”
When asked about his favourite Mani Ratanam films, Nambiar said that that is a tough question. “Iruvar, Dil Se and Thalapathi – these are the three I would pick. But then Kannathil Muthamittal is also a favourite film. There are too many. Iruvar, I think, is right on top along with Dil Se,” he said.
Coming to what the retrospective will offer the audience, Nambiar said that this is a good opportunity for them to reconnect to Ratnam’s work. “Some of the films that they must have watched in the dubbed version, they will get to watch their original version,” he said. “And they will get to see the interactions we would be doing with different people who collaborated with Mani sir on his films. As an audience, there is so much to take away from that.”
Nambiar shared that as soon as the news about the retrospective spread last week, he has been getting a lot of demands from people from other cities for something like this on Ratnam’s films. “There were huge demands from Chennai, Kerala and Delhi from my friends, peers and some random people too who approached. I hope I can do this even more,” he said.
Also Read: Mani Ratnam expresses desire to work with Sai Pallavi; says, “I hope I get to work with you one day”
BOLLYWOOD NEWS - LIVE UPDATES
Catch us for latest Bollywood News, New Bollywood Movies update, Box office collection, New Movies Release , Bollywood News Hindi, Entertainment News, Bollywood Live News Today & Upcoming Movies 2025 and stay updated with latest hindi movies only on Bollywood Hungama.