Anurag Kashyap's fascination for dark subjects is evident from his movies and the filmmaker says he tackles such emotions on screen because normally people don't like confront it in real life.
Kashyap, 42, who has directed films like Black Friday, Dev D, Gangs of Wasseypur feels the society today has become hypocrite.
"I am attracted to those emotional spaces which we don't really confront. This is my biggest issue with the world. We ourselves don't understand our hypocrisy. There is a major reaction to just everything now. First an outrage happens then if it is proved wrong, we go quiet, then some other outrage starts," Kashyap told PTI during a recent visit.
The director has often been labelled as controversy's favourite child for his don't care attitude and frank opinions about the film industry. However, Kashyap says he is not a rebel and his aggressive stance is a way to preserve himself.
"People see me like a rebel but I am not a rebel. I have fought to preserve myself. Whatever I believe in, I fight to preserve it. Many times it goes against the tide. It's an ongoing battle and it has been on since the beginning of my career," he said.
Kashyap, who deleted his Twitter account following his outburst after The Lunchbox was overlooked to represent India at the Oscars last year, said people are quick to react to issues without knowing the reality.
"It is very easy to go on Twitter. Everyone is vehement to attack someone. There is so much fear of trolls and of people who are randomly attacking you without finding out the truth. Earlier, people used to investigate and then react. Now reaction comes first. That's why I deleted my Twitter account.
I was tired of being quoted out-of-context," he said. Kashyap, who has previously directed a film titled 'No Smoking', is currently fighting against the Censor Board's anti-smoking disclaimer in his latest movie Ugly.
The filmmaker said that the government should regulate the tobacco industry if they want to curtail smoking instead of using films to spread a message that is ineffective. "People think I made 'No Smoking' and now I am fighting against the no-smoking disclaimer. For 'No Smoking', which was pro-smoking, the health ministry gave me an award. That's the irony.
There is a lot of contradiction in our industry. If the government thinks smoking is a social ill then they should regulate the tobacco industry why put it on us?," he said.
"The ticker in the movies is not going to help. It is irritating and distracting. The government can work together with industry to fight smoking. They can ask filmmakers to make anti-smoking films and we will give effective, poignant films which will have an impact on people," he said, adding that the High Court has deferred the case and there is a petition pending in the Supreme Court.
Kashyap lamented that cinema is not taken seriously by the government. "There are so many petitions from our industry. We get used a lot but we are not taken seriously," he said.
Praising the Chinese government's effective steps to change the face of their cinema, Kashyap said such an overhaul is required in India as well.
"Cinema has become a cultural ambassador in so many countries. When China recognised that, they changed laws, number of theatres increased. It is at par with US. It is the same with Korea. In India, there is nothing like that. There needs to be an overhaul," he said.
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