On Friday 27th March 2015, Vidhu Vinod Chopra held a masterclass at SOAS, University of London (the School of Oriental and African Studies). At the event, Chopra spoke about his past and recent critical and commercial successes, as well as gave an insight to his upcoming Hollywood venture, Broken Horses, which is to release on 10th April 2015.
The masterclass was organised by NISU (National Indian Students Union) and SOAS. Chopra was interviewed live on stage by academician and author Rachel Dwyer, Professor of Indian Cultures and Cinema at SOAS.
During the event, Chopra reminisced about his journey as a filmmaker in Hindi cinema and referred to his game-changing and socially-provocative films Parinda (1989), 1942:A Love Story (1994)and Eklavya: The Royal Guard (2007).
Speaking on Broken Horses, which could be referred to as the modern day Parinda, Vidhu Vinod Chopra said, “Broken Horses is a sort of amalgamation and loose translation of my film Parinda.”
On talking about his transition into making this Hollywood film, Chopra stated, “We make these kind of films to show the world that we can do it if we want to, not because we have to or because we want to transcend into Hollywood films. I make films to communicate universally with my audience, and I use the medium and language that they want to see and hear.”
Chopra spoke about how he is inclined to make projects that he loves and feels passionate about. He adds amidst laughter, “The fact that I’m a success is an absolute miracle, I have absolutely no business sense at all in regards to what will work at the box office commercially.”
