MUMBAI: Gadar 2 director Anil Sharma appeared to call out certain practicises in the film industry that he feels have affected how audiences view movies. 

Also read -Woah! Box office collection of Gadar 2 slows down with massive advance bookings for Jawan

He said that people have approached him with complaints about the visual effects in Gadar, without realising that the film was shot practically, and doesn’t have visual effects at all.

In an interview with Instant Bollywood, the filmmaker said that audiences have become so used to CGI that they can’t recognise in-camera footage when they see it. 

He said that because of the compromised budget that he was working with, he couldn’t afford to spend crores on visual effects, which is why he opted to take the old-school route, and revisit techniques he used on the first film, 2001’s Gadar: Ek Prem Katha.

He said, “We didn’t have Rs 50 crore or Rs 60 crore to spend on VFX. That’s what studios are spending these days; sometimes, the VFX budget can also be as high as Rs 100 crore. We decided to shoot everything for real; we shot real explosions, we had real tanks, we had real crowds… It’s a time-consuming process, and it takes extra effort. This is how movies used to be made; this is how we made the first Gadar.”

He continued, “After watching the trailer, people complained about the VFX, and I thought, ‘Have they lost their minds?’ They didn’t realise that there’s no VFX in the movie. But that’s what has been ingrained in their minds. They aren’t used to seeing real effects. It’s not their fault; they’ve become used to VFX in the last 15 years. Nobody is shooting in-camera anymore. These days, actors don’t step out of studios; the crew shoots outdoors and then they use face-replacement techniques. We went out in the harsh heat and did the hard work, and we’re enjoying the fruits of our labour now.”

In an earlier interview, the filmmaker also complained about budgets for films ballooning to Rs 500 crore or Rs 600 crore, because stars were demanding hundreds of crores for themselves. 

Also read -Woah! Box office collection of Gadar 2 slows down with massive advance bookings for Jawan

He said that Sunny Deol and the entire cast and crew of Gadar 2 slashed their salaries to ensure the money went into the production. Now in its fourth week of release, Gadar 2 has made Rs 506 crore in India, and is on track to beat Pathaan’s all-time record (for a Hindi movie) of Rs 543 crore.

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Credits - The Indian Express