It takes a lot to impress Vidhu Vinod Chopra. An outspoken man, the filmmaker has often courted controversy with his open dislike for certain forms of cinema.
Rajesh Mapuskar's Ventilator has no such worries. At a screening of Mapuskar's film, Chopra was all praise for it. He said, "I've already seen the film. Today, I called many of my friends to watch, as I am so impressed with the film."
Ventilator is also the debut of Priyanka Chopra's home production, Purple Pebble Pictures. The film has a cast of almost 116 actors, led by Ashutosh Gowariker, and was written and directed by Mapuskar. (Click here to read Cinestaan.com's review of Ventilator.)
Chopra said, "I think everybody should see the movie. I am supporting a good film. If Ventilator had not been a good movie, I would have never come here, even if Rajesh Mapuskar has directed it."
The producer of 3 Idiots even praised Priyanka Chopra's song 'Baba', which the actress dedicated to her father, the late Dr Ashok Chopra. Speaking about the song, Vidhu Vinod Chopra said, "The song is in Marathi language and it is so emotional that it could be felt. Cinema has no language."
Gracious as he was in praise of this little film, Vinod Chopra had no such feelings of magnanimity for Karan Johar's recently released Ae Dil Hai Mushkil. When journalists at the venue asked him about the controversy over the film insulting the legacy of legendary playback singer Mohammed Rafi, he answered, "I don't watch Hindi films these days. The film which you have mentioned, I haven't seen it, neither I have any interest to see."
To be fair to Chopra, you can't like them all.