DNA Celebrity Column | The Master, writes Sajid Khan

Today’s column is about the greatest filmmaker ever: Stanley Kubrick. Many of you haven’t seen most (or all) of his films... so, how is he the best? Well, how many of you have actually seen the Mona Lisa painting? But you still believe that Picasso is the greatest painter of all times... right? Kubrick was an enigma to many people, especially, the media. He was an extrovert only in his films as they were shockingly new, bold and always broke conventions.

In his personal life, he was reclusive, fiercely guarding his anonymity. He always remained silent whether he was being applauded or damned. His work always spoke for him... whether it was the shocking Lolita, the best Roman emperor-vs- slave film Spartacus, the undying sci-fi cult 2001: A Space Odyssey, the most hated film of the ’70s A Clockwork Orange (his home in England was pelted with stones almost everyday for months!) or the best horror film of all time The Shining, to name a few. In fact, all his movies were riddled with controversy, but after a few years, each one was called a classic.

The world always waited for the next Kubrick film...he was perhaps the first individual to dictate terms to the studios, which itself was revolutionary in the studio-dictated Hollywood. (Steven) Spielberg, (Francis Ford) Coppola, (James) Cameron and (Martin) Scorsese, all truly believed that  Kubrick was the greatest filmmaker of all time. Perhaps, forgotten today by many. Do yourself a favour if you love movies. Start watching Kubrick films. You may love, loathe or live them, but they will remain etched in your memory forever...