Anurag Kashyap: Bollywood’s Greenlights Are Down to Two Genres
Anurag Kashyap says producers tell him only patriotic and devotional films are getting made, as his indie film Little Thomas heads to theatres October 23.
Filmmaker Anurag Kashyap has a blunt read on Bollywood right now: if a project is not patriotic or devotional, it is becoming harder to get made. Speaking with Hindustan Times while championing the upcoming film Little Thomas, he said a producer recently admitted the industry does not know what to back.
“You can make either a patriotic or a devotional film. Otherwise, nothing else is getting greenlit. That is a fact and a tragedy.”
Kashyap pointed to the success of titles such as Dhurandhar 2, Border 2 and Hanuman Ansh as evidence of where the market is heading.
An enabler, not just a name
Kashyap is executive producer on Little Thomas, and he framed his role as supporting filmmakers rather than leading their projects. “I see myself more as an enabler,” he said. “It is just about faith and upping somebody’s morale.”
The difficulty, he added, is not limited to one format. “Whether it’s a children’s film or an adult film, making your own film is difficult today,” he said. “I don’t think anybody knows what to make today.”
Why a two-genre slate matters
For audiences, a narrow slate means fewer kinds of stories reach the screen, while makers outside the formula have fewer doors to knock on. It is a concentration risk: when theatrical budgets chase two proven themes, independent and offbeat projects often wait longer for backing.
The rise of big-canvas patriotic titles and devotional dramas has made those formats feel like safe bets, and producers often follow what has worked most recently. Kashyap’s complaint is that this safety-first instinct quietly shuts the door on smaller and stranger stories.
Kashyap hopes Little Thomas can break through anyway. Written and directed by Kaushal Oza, the film features Hridansh Parekh in the title role alongside Gulshan Devaiah and Rasika Dugal. It is produced by Kashyap, Anushka Shah, Charu Oza, Rajnikant Oza, Akshay Thakker, Kabir Ahuja and Ranjan Singh.
- Film: Little Thomas, directed by Kaushal Oza
- Cast: Gulshan Devaiah, Rasika Dugal, Hridansh Parekh
- Release: Theatrical, October 23
“Hopefully, this film will sneak in, because this is not like any other film out there,” he said.
Don’t box in child-led stories
Kashyap also questioned the industry’s habit of labelling any film with a young lead as children’s cinema. He cited the Telugu film Don’t Trouble The Trouble, starring Fahadh Faasil and backed by SS Rajamouli, along with coming-of-age stories and the series Adolescence, as examples of narratives about young people that work for grown-up audiences.
For viewers who want a wider Bollywood, the first weekend of an independent release is often the clearest signal. Buying a ticket for a film like Little Thomas on October 23 is a small vote for a more varied slate.
Source: Mid-day
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