Prejudiced criticism cannot harm Sawariya

The entire hullabaloo over 'Om Shanti Om' starring Shah Rukh Khan and debutant Deepika Padukone, as well as the poor review of his film 'Saawariya' has left Sanjay Leela Bhansali an annoyed man.

The man who has earlier presented the audience with block busters like 'Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam', "Devdas' and 'Black' is confident that such 'prejudiced criticism' will not damage his film and people are still going to watch the movie. Bhansali says that he is always open to healthy criticism, but biased criticism can do him no harm as the audience is with him.

Bhansali points out that contrary to the bad reviews received from a section of the media, his latest offering 'Saawariya' has collected a whopping amount around Rs 500-570 million in India in its opening weekend also and claims this to be the biggest opening for an Indian film with newcomers in the lead.

Admitting that his film 'Saawariya' is a little slow paced, Bhansali says that compared to the biggest names in the other film – read 'Om Shanti Om' – his is movie with two new comers – Sonam Kapoor and Ranbir Kapoor. And so there is bound to be some difference, but still believes that 'Saawariya' has got the best opening in the history of Indian cinema with two absolute new comers.

The director feels that the huge criticism against 'Saawariya' has been stopping the audience from appreciating his efforts to merge raga-based melodies with a Broadway kind of a play. This is why the acceptance to his film is slower this time. However, he says that he is confident that people love 'Saawariya'. It's only a handful of critics who are futilely trying to influence the audience, but they won't succeed, Bhansali feels, adding, they had trued to do this with 'Devdas' too, but people rejected them.

Irrespective of all criticisms, Bhansali says that he has his faith on the audience, who are unbiased and their verdict would definitely make 'Saawariya' one of the biggest hits of the year. He believes that the audience is much more intelligent than the filmmaker or the critics otherwise films like 'Do Bigha Zameen' or '36 Chowringhee Lane' would not have become such great hits.

His friend and colleague Karan Johar has some good words about Bhansali. Karan says that Bhansali understands heartbreak and beauty, but his critics don't.