Rani Mukerji lauds ’12th Fail’ after feeling ‘offended’ by Prithvi Konanur’s call to watch Iranian cinema. Twitter questions her logic.
Rani Mukerji recently said that India ‘makes the best films in the world’ as she gave the example of Vikrant Massey-starrer 12th Fail, based on IPS officer Manoj Kumar Sharma’s life. During a recent roundtable with Galatta Plus, Rani made the comment in response to filmmaker Prithvi Konanur saying that Iranian cinema was better than Indian films as far as ideas go. Rani’s response was met with criticism on X (formerly Twitter), with some even saying ‘Rani’s take is as garbage as it gets’.
What Prithvi Konanur said
Before Rani Mukerji interjected, Prithvi Konanur had said, “I ask people to watch Iranian films. Watch them. You can see a vast difference between our films and their films. I feel we are, for some reason, actually far behind Iranian cinema. This is an honest opinion. I request people to watch Iranian films and see how advanced they are in terms of ideas, maybe not in terms of technology, but in terms of ideas where they are.”
Rani Mukerji’s argument
Rani said, “So I would like to say something here because I am a little offended when he says that we should learn from other people’s cinema. I do believe that Indian cinema is the best in the world, so I would not agree with that. I am really sorry because if you want to talk about films that come from the roots, I think you must watch 12th Fail. It is a brilliant film made by Vidhu Vinod Chopra and it talks about India… everything is very brilliantly shown… I feel that we in India make the most diverse films. When you talk about films from outside India, they don’t have the diversity that India has. I believe Indian cinema has a lot to offer and actually are the best in the world… I would not want to compare Indian cinema with any other cinema in the world because we have the truest stories, most grounded stories…”
Netizen’s reactions
Reacting to a tweet that said, “India makes the best films in the world – Rani Mukerji. Do you agree?” One X user tweeted, “Haven’t seen many Iranian films but pretty sure none of the acclaimed ones featured the protagonist in brownface the entire time to look ‘poor’ the way 12th Fail did. Rani’s take is as garbage as it gets, and Karan Johar next to her (during the roundtable) loved Animal. Sums up the airheads running Bollywood.”
Another said, “This is what happens when people don’t watch enough movies from outside their country. Not a single point Rani Mukerji said makes sense.” One more tweeted, “Saying India is the best and we make the best films doesn’t mean a thing. Others should say it about us. This sounds pompous…”
An X user also wrote, “lol the audacity of casually countering the argued brilliance of Iranian cinema with 12th fail.” One also tweeted, “The truly hilarious thing about that Rani Mukerji quote from the roundtable is that her prime example was Satyajit Ray, a man who had nothing but contempt for the kind of Indian cinema Rani makes (laughing emoji).”
Countering Rani’s argument, a person also said, “We do make all kinds of films but that’s not to say we’re the best in the world. If what Rani says is true, why do our films struggle to find a spot in the international circuits? Most of our films are subpar and banal.”
More about 12th Fail
12th Fail, which stars Vikrant Massey as Manoj Kumar Sharma, portrays the challenges he faced on his journey to becoming an IPS officer. Also starring Medha Shankar as Manoj’s wife, IRS officer Shraddha Joshi, 12th Fail is now streaming on Disney+ Hotstar. The film, sent to Oscars 2024 as an independent nomination, was released in theatres in October 2023.
Disclaimer: Except the headline and synopsis, this story has been taken from the HT News Service.