When Amitabh Bachchan said ‘sad’ editing was to blame for poor reviews of Abhishek Bachchan’s Raavan, Mani Ratnam reacted: ‘Not here to…’

According to a Mid-Day report, Mani Ratnam was quoted as saying in a Tamil weekly, “That is his opinion. I am not bothered about it. And I am not here in the industry to get marks from Amitabh Bachchan. We have made a film after two years of hard work. Anyone can comment on it.”

@jiteshpillaai Agree, Jitesh ..gather lot of merited film edited out, causing inconsistent performance and narrative,but what presentation !

— Amitabh Bachchan (@SrBachchan) June 20, 2010

Speaking to Mid-Day, the film’s editor A Sreekar Prasad said that Amitabh is entitled to his opinion, and explained the intensive creative process that went into the film’s editing. Prasad said, “As a member of the audience, he (Amitabh Bachchan) has the right to say whatever he wants to. We’ve been in the process of editing Raavan for a year and a half. I have gone through the footage with Mani so rigorously. We were probably in the best position to judge what was good for the film.” He added, “The director chose to start the narrative on a very high note. It begins with the kidnapping and moves straight ahead to the finale. We had no back projection, no explanations, and no character establishment. We chose to tell our story in this way. We didn’t want to spoon-feed the audience. Mr Bachchan wanted us to graphically show ten heads. Mani and I tried that. But we made a conscious decision not to get into that area. We decided to let the audience get into the character’s head as the narrative progressed. I am sure there are lots of people who didn’t get the point. But it was a risk worth taking. Because a certain section did comprehend.”

The film’s cinematographer Santosh Sivan also reacted to the controversy, and told news agency PTI, “I personally think everyone has a right to their own opinion. At the end of the day, it’s the director’s call. It’s a different view point he has taken on Raavanan which is a huge hit in the South.”

Vikram, who recently reunited with Aishwarya Rai and Mani Ratnam for the two Ponniyin Selvan films, said according to PTI, “I respect Mr Bachchan and I respect Mani sir. It’s not something I can comment about as it’s between Mani sir and him, though you can hear a hundred things, some say its good, some say its bad. You (the audience) are the ones who decide. There has and shall always be respect and dignity for him (Mani Ratnam)… media playing with words. Mani is one of our finest directors… he should never stop making films.”

The Hindi Raavan made less than Rs 50 crore, and was considered a commercial disappointment. The Tamil version is generally considered to be the better film, and was successful in the South markets.