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Aamir Khan Image Credit: IANS

Actor Aamir Khan believes that when it comes to churning out creative content and quality craft that is seen as the trademark of the 1960s, today even more people are “challenging themselves” and “coming up with different stories”.

Khan was speaking at the launch of book Music, Masti, Modernity — The Cinema of Nasir Husain, on the legendary filmmaker, who was his uncle, along with Husain’s children, Mansoor Khan and Nuzhat Khan, on Friday.

Lauding the quality and content of the films that were created in 1960s and later, he said that this era was a golden age for Indian cinema but today, too, there are people who do good work and those who don’t.

“Creative people and the creativity was there before as well. Then also there were people doing good work and people doing not-so-good work. I think its in nostalgia that we think that the movies in the 1960s were real and good ... They were indeed and I am not denying that,” the 51-year-old said.

“At that time people had gone through, risen from the social upheaval, Independence struggle was there, partition had taken place ... so that entire generation of people who were creative at that time ... Sahir Ludhianvi, Majrooh Sultanpuri ... very left-wing leaning people ...

“I feel I wish I was born at that time ... Mehboob Khan saheb, K Asif, Guru Dutt ... these are all people of that turmoil time, they grew up in that era. I feel that was the golden period of Indian cinema. But I think in fact now today even more and more young people are coming up with different stories, challenging themselves, challenging the audience,” Khan added.

Giving examples of his own films, Khan, who has worked on projects such as Taare Zameen Par, 3 Idiots, Rang De Basanti and Talaash, said not all films have advertisements and there are many creative people who love their art and their job.

“Today also there a lot of creative people who love their art, their job, work, they do crazy work. In films like mine, you won’t see advertisements in them. There are a lot of creative people. For example, the movies I have worked in, look at the writers of those films, the stories that you liked or might have liked in which I have worked ... those have been penned by other writer, not me.

“These creative people with whom I got the opportunity to work with ... different people, so there are creative individuals in our industry ... Marathi cinema today is coming up with really challenging work,” he said.