Minnal Murali director Basil Joseph comments on Hindi debate, says ‘we can’t sideline Bollywood’

Recent days saw a number of tweets and conversations about the growth of the south Indian film industry and its mark in the Hindi belt, leading to several debates about the impact of south Indian film success on Bollywood. Many actors and filmmakers have commented on the issue, sparking several controversies. Minnal Murali’s director, Basil Joseph was the latest artist to weigh in on this.

Speaking to IANS, the filmmaker said that the south Indian industry has produced some really good content which has been doing well across India. He said this could be really ‘motivating’ for Bollywood. “We cannot completely sideline Bollywood because we have really good artistes and technicians working in Bollywood," he added.

He also added that we need to see it all as Indian cinema, without any classification such as South India, Hindi or regional cinema.

Basil Joseph also talked about how south Indian films are now breaking boundaries and getting popularity following the rise of OTTs. He said that filmmakers from the south can now think about a larger audience rather than just catering a story to the regional audience.

The actor-director also compared the South Indian industry to the Korean film industry, saying that Korean cinema also went through something similar and was making films with universal content, which even got them an Oscar. He added that such an evolution of south Indian industries will enhance the landscape of Indian cinema.

Basil Joseph received widespread appreciation from around the country and other parts of the world as well, following the release of the superhero flick, Minnal Murali. Starring Tovino Thomas in the lead, Basil’s movie is available to stream on Netflix.