Flop 5: Directors who must retire

Dev Anand

At 85, Devsaab's enthusiasm never ceases to amaze me. But when I think of it, I cannot seem to remember the last time his film actually appealed to me (or to the box-office). Even if you think of the last film that actually was something of a 'hit', you could put your finger on the 1978 release Des Pardes. Incidentally, it was Tina Munim's first film as an actress. Tina's moved on in life (and how!), just maybe, Devsaab, you should too…

Ram Gopal Varma

May I, at the outset, confess my love for Ram Gopal Varma's early films before I go out and tell you just why I think he should retire? C'mon, let's not take away the credit from him for films like Satya, Company and Sarkar among others. But then again, as someone famously said, 'The evil that men do lives after them'. And so is the case with Ramu. Most of his recent films made me cringe. Many think RGV ki Aag was his worst so far. But believe me when I say, Darling far surpasses Aag. Why, I never even bothered to watch Phoonk. After daring his audiences to watch the film alone in an auditorium to win Rs 5 lakh, Ramu, I am told, chickened out of the bet…probably because he realised the film was running into empty halls anyway

Raj Kumar Santoshi

Again, another example of brilliance gone waste…. Santoshi's Andaz Apna Apna makes me roll with laughter each time I watch it on DVD. And who can forget Sunny Deol's performance in Ghayal? Purely for the range of work Santoshi has on his CV, my heart goes out to him. But again, look at some of his latest films – The Legend of Bhagat Singh, Family and that patriotic saga stuck in the '90s but released in 2008 called Halla Bol. Probably Rajji, it's time to start watching contemporary films again, ain't it?

Subhash Ghai

I'm not sure if it's because he spends so much time in his school or there are no DVD parlours near his house. But it seems to me that Ghaisaab has probably stopped watching cinema. The more I watch his recent films these days, (and how many ever times I do it) Subhash Ghai looks as if he's stuck in some sort of a time warp. I've loved all his films from Kalicharan to Karma to Ram Lakhan and Taal. But that's where my love affair with Subhashji's films ended. After Taal, each film seemed to undo everything he did till then. Yaadein, Kisna and Black & White failed even to reach close to that 'a-ha' factor. His next film Yuvvraaj is about to be released. And frankly honies, I ain't looking forward to it.

Vikram Bhatt

I was recently quite surprised to know that Vikram Bhatt once assisted the legendary Mukul Anand. So it didn't shock me when his latest film 1920, though not such a brilliant piece of work, got accolades for its technical perfection. But then again, Vikram's had a track record that no other director has…or wants to have either. With over 10 flops in a span of five-odd years, it's a surprise Vikram's managed to survive in Bollywood. Maybe Vikram, just maybe, you should consider retiring?