“I think I am instinctive” – Ekta Kapoor: Part 1 1 : Bollywood News

“I think I am instinctive” – Ekta Kapoor: Part 1

By Devansh Patel -

June 30, 2012 - 12:54 PM IST

When it comes to entertainment I am of the feeling that as our society progresses, genuine experience becomes riskier and the desire for it increases. A decade and a half ago, with divine grace and unmatched drive one woman changed the way society looked at entertainment and with her motion picture company delivering niche movies that are turning into blockbusters at the box office, there is no doubt that Ekta Kapoor and her Balaji Telefilms along with Balaji Motion Pictures define change in television and cinema. Yes, it is happening, may be not in waves, but in ripples. Be it their choice of content, marketing or budgeting, Ekta's smallest inputs have changed the Bollywood landscape significantly. I am running 10 minutes late and text Ekta. She replies with a smiley, 'Chill'. The moment I walk into the Balaji building I am surrounded by the blissful and blessed vibe. I reach the 6th floor that buzzes with beautiful vibes too: all the marketing girls. One of them, Jeena, escorts me to the 7th floor where her team is preparing the crazy, insane and adult ways of promoting their sex-com Kya Super Kool Hain Hum. Fascinating indeed! I get my green tea and as I'm about to check on my watch, Ekta enters. Timing boss! Its unbelievable how India's most powerful woman walks in dressed down in her pretty pink shirt and denims and still manages to stand out: her face free of makeup, her dark hair loose, her eyes tired but her body full of filmy fever. She is so low-key, so quiet and modest in the way she presents herself, that it is easy to forget how exceptional she is. The lady is made of passion for cinema and as far as I know Ekta, she will continue to fight an uphill battle in the film world by displaying her formidable talent as well as her resilience to take Balaji where it rightly should be - beyond her expectations. In this Part 1 exclusive, I zoom in on movie madness from inside Bollywood's HQ of hedonism - Balaji Office, and watch and learn from the woman who dared to be different - Ekta Kapoor.

Instead of asking what's the secret recipe of making Balaji blockbusters, let me ask you - where does Balaji go now?

Balaji is a very young company. We are actively in film production for three years now. From where I look at it, we've actually not even scratched the surface. We are a production house claiming to be a studio (laughs). We have an arm left as far as our complete exploitation goes, internationally also. We've just started getting our international partners in place for various releases all over the world for various films of ours. The studio isn't about production alone; the studio is about how you can manage to optimise the sale and franchise of the film and how to get the maximum commercial value out of it. We've not been able to do that (a slight pause) yet (laughs). Our strength as of now is production and we are getting our distribution arm in place too. We are an in-house production team and that itself has helped us create a certain amount of reputation in the fraternity and beyond, but for financial exploitation,
we now have to start taking more risks rather than just selling out various territories but eventually releasing films on our own. We will slowly turn into a big studio (smiles).

Ekta Kapoor has always been a mystery to me. But is she a good business woman or an even better creative head?

I think I am instinctive. If in business an instinct works, I am instinctive to a certain extent. If in creativity too it works, then be it. But if it goes against you, you go wrong in both counts. Creativity isn't against business, it's always supportive. If there is any form of creativity that's going against the business acumen of the company, it's a whim. I am not whimsical; I am instinctive at times and more creative.

So, you know your viewers taste while making a film?

For any movie of mine I want to be a viewer first and then a maker. So when I am a viewer, I like to get a pleasant shock, I like to enjoy good music that's got some quirky lyrics. So if I enjoy it, I make it. I don't make it and then enjoy it.

“I think I am instinctive” – Ekta Kapoor: Part 1

Please spread some awareness to our adults on adult comic entertainment called Kya Super Kool Hain Hum.

For Kya Super Kool Hain Hum, we had an approach that said - It's not one of your family films but yet it's not anti-family. Adult comedies have got to do with adult form of thinking. My friend saw Kya Kool Hain Hum with her mother and said that even her mom loved it. I went - "Are you serious?" I don't mind families watching it. Why are we ashamed of any kind of humour that has sexual connotations? Families do watch such films too. As long as it isn't crass, not below the belt and not exploitative of the female form, I have no issues with sexual humour. I expect that such films I see with my friends and my mom would go and see with her friends but if we do go together, it's still ok. Kya Super Kool Hain Hum is very funny and this one is definitely politically incorrect (laughs). So much so that you know you aren't taking anybody seriously in the film.

Is your chin up in pride instead of head hanging in shame?

(Laughs) I am just waiting for critics to rip apart the film, strip and r*** the film and call it 'the worst piece of cinema' (laughs). I am going to be putting such and more other quotes on our banner once they quote (laughs).

So, one of the new blame game goes like this - films aren't working because audiences have changed, their mentality and blah blahâ€¦

I don't think we audiences have changed. I am of the belief that there are different audiences for different films. Why do I call my mom a different viewer? It's the same answer. She is a different audience. We have a huge consumer market. Unless it's a 90 crore film, why do I bother about getting the whole world to watch my films? Viewers only want entertainment. Period. Whether the entertainment comes in the form of comedy, drama, action, so be it. When I go to a theatre on a Sunday night, I just see the multiplex viewers don't have any patience for boredom. People who enter the theatre want to have fun.

You've put in so much of faith in your team, be it hiring new writers, directors and some insane decisions that no production houses take.

I put a lot of faith in my work. I don't call it a risk by working with new people. What works for me is a great script. Then it's my responsibility to promote the film and if I fall short of doing that, it's my bad. New directors and writers put in that extra effort too that's a bonus. We have to do things which we believe in and not only things that are great on paper. We've seen things work great on paper before but got white-washed on screen. So there you go!

More on Ekta Kapoor, Balaji and Bollywood in Part 2

Watch Promo: Kyaa Super Kool Hain Hum