I will always release my films in theatres first: Anubhav Sinha

Filmmaker Anubhav Sinha isn't keen to explore OTT again, despite the phenomenal rise of streaming platforms lately. Sinha, widely known as the director of hard-hitting films such as Article 15, Thappad, Mulk and Assi, has been associated with the 2024 series IC814: The Kandahar Hijack as creator, director and producer.

“I will always release my films in theatres first. I don’t know any better because I don’t know how to shoot for television anymore. If you’re making a film strictly for television, you have to shoot differently, at least slightly, and I don’t know how to do that anymore,” said Sinha, in an exclusive conversation with India Today. For him, cinema will always be an art form meant for the big screen.

Recalling his experience of filming IC814, which became popular after release as a series, Sinha said he had never approached the subject as content meant for the small screen. “IC814 was not shot for the small screen. It was shot for the big screen. I just got lucky that it worked on television. But while doing IC 814, I decided that this would be the last one,” he said.

The filmmaker explained that for him, scale is not just about grand visuals or wide frames. “I cannot not see a close-up on a big screen. People talk a lot about wide shots on a big screen, but to me, even a close-up on a big screen is a big shot. That’s what drives me,” he said.

At the same time, Sinha clarified that he holds no bias against creators who choose streaming platforms. “I have nothing against people who make (content) exclusively for television. I think that is probably another art form, similar to making films for theatres. But I have stuck by my decision so far, as long as I can afford to do it,” Sinha said.

Revealing how IC814 came his way, Sinha said the project had already been in development before he joined. “IC814 was not my idea originally. Netflix and Matchbox were developing it for a long time, I think for a couple of years. They had offered it to me earlier as well, and then again two years later. This time, for personal reasons, I couldn’t say no,” he said.

Even then, he chose to stay true to his cinematic instincts. “I said no the first time but when I eventually did it, I shot it like a film. Maybe that worked. But I don’t think I want to do it again. I like that whole sound of a theatre, the size of the big screen — that is how I enjoy the art form,” he said.