Prakash Raj is one of the few actors who has worked in five Indian film industries (Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and Hindi) consistently for the last 38 years. He has had decent success across the board, but the veteran actor now feels that Tamil and Malayalam films are far superior to Hindi cinema, which has moved away from its roots since the multiplex era began in the mid-2000s.
“In the current context, I feel that Malayalam and Tamil cinema are making very strong films. Hindi cinema, on the other hand, has lost its roots. Everything looks beautiful, wonderful, like plastic, as seen in Madame Tussauds museum. We (the South) still have stories to tell, new young Tamil directors are talking about Dalit issues. And that gives a lot of hope,” Prakash said during the Kerala Literature Festival in Kozhikode on Saturday.
He added, “After the multiplexes, the Bombay film industry started making films only for multiplexes. Very nice films and things like that. Because they were doing well. They got into that culture and with that they lost touch with the rural areas of Rajasthan and Bihar.”
Prakash Raj He recalled that after Independence, Hindi cinema stayed close to its secular roots. He cited the example of Manmohan Desai’s 1977 hit comedy Amar Akbar Anthony, where Amitabh Bachchan’s character Anthony Gonsalves, Rishi Kapoor’s Akbar Ilhabadi and Vinod Khanna’s Amar Khanna crossed their religions to join forces and donate blood to save a life.
“It’s not like that anymore. Nowadays, it’s all about money and looks – reels, page 3 coverage and loud self-promotion. In the process, I feel the industry has lost its connect with the audience,” argued Prakash, who was last seen in Aanand L Rai’s hit romantic drama Tere Ishk Mein last year.
Prakash Raj was already a widely known name in the South when he made his Bollywood debut with Krishna Vamsi’s 2002 action film Shakti – The Power. He starred in memorable films like Rajkumar Santoshi’s Khakee (2004), Rohit Shetty’s Singham (2011), Prabhu Deva’s Wanted (2009), Arbaaz Khan’s Dabangg 2 (2012), Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra’s Bhaag Milkha Bhaag (2013), Sabbir Khan’s Heropanti (2014), Golmaal by Shetty Again (2017) and Salaam Venky (2022) by Revathy.
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He will next be seen reuniting with Adivi Sesh in the action film Dacoit, made in both Hindi and Telugu, which is scheduled to release in theaters this Eid on March 19. Previously, Raj shared screen space with Sesh in Sashi Kiran Tikka’s 2022 bilingual action drama Major.