Filmmaker Kiran Rao says she was a “classic film-school snob” who thought mainstream cinema was synonymous with “bad cinema”.
“It’s a coincidence that I returned from film school around the same time Mami [Mumbai Academy of Moving Image Film Festival] started. I was this classic film-school snob who thought mainstream cinema was synonymous with bad cinema,” Rao said at a press conference on Wednesday held to unveil the 17th edition of the film festival.
“I thought I couldn’t make my films here. Considering the period of the late ’90s, mainstream was largely bad cinema,” she said.
The dates for the Mami Film Festival, October 29 to November 5, were announced at the press conference.
Stating that film festivals are generally deemed “arty”, Rao clarified that it would be a blend of commercial and art house cinema.
“The mainstream cinema landscape has changed dramatically and now is in a position to start new relations with art house cinema. The situation is such that both of them can co-exist brilliantly, collaborating and infusing energies into each other. And Mami plays a crucial role in this integration,” she said.
