feeling anxious,
am flying to LA tonight,
always anxious when I go there
LA is a city of temptation
but how can i curse it,
because temptation is only as effective as you are tempted,
but LA conjures a web around you,
makes you revel in illusion
and people live in some illusion of immortality
and i get caught up in that too
and though life in mumbai is so angst ridden
floods, disease, poverty, contradiction
uncomfortable, traffic jams
pollution – u name it
yet it reminds me every moment of the day
that I am mortal
and flawed
and just a particle in the universe
and that my sense of identity
individuality
is constantly challenged in mumbai
but inflated in LA
so I am anxious !!
‘temptation is only as effective as you are tempted’
very true mr. k. to give you some hope and to perhaps assuage your anxiety, i’d like to let you know that there is an alternate l.a. to the one you describe. the l.a. i know is full of painters and writers and filmmakers and mothers and children and seekers and finders and love and anger and air and water and good food but bad traffic and books and poetry and abundance and lack and the world in a grain of sand. i don’t shop ’til i drop, fake tan, inject poisons, modify my body, care what others are wearing, obsess over booking a pilot, or posture like i’m immortal (well, i am, but not in this form).
and if while you’re here it all starts to overwhelm you, you can always come over for some tea. i’ve got some great tap water…
p
Hi sir i love your films and i’m a low writer but have a big heart. i have written some films, films i know will shake the world but can’t get to a good source that will fine or try to hear me. i’m mailing from Nigeria part of west africa. pls can we work together. pls mail me back.peace
Dear Sir,
Let me start by saying I love all your films and will always look fwd to anything you get involved in.
The reason I am writing to you is because I am just curious to know whether if you have heard of maestro Ilayaraaja from down south?
This man has composed for nearly 800 movies, mostly for Tamil films and some other Indian languages too. He created a milestone for India and even Asia when he was the first Asian invited by the Queen of England to compose a symphony some years ago. It was performed by the Royal Philharmonic of London and conducted by John Scott. And few years ago, Rajkumar Santoshi also utilised his services to do the background score for his movie Lajja. Ilayaraaja again used the Budapest Symphony Orchestra (first time was for Kamalhasan’s Hey Ram). The output was excellent and makes you wonder that this man’s work must be realised not only in India but everywhere. (http://www.raajangahm.com/bgscores.html)
Lately, Mr Ilayaraaja created another milestone when he converted one of the oldest Indian literature, Thiruvasakam, into an oratario/symphonic form. For this project, he worked with Grammy winners like Stephen Schwartz (Prince of Egypt, Pocahontas, etc.) and recording engineer guru Richard King (from Sony Studios) and also with the Budapest Symphony Orchestra plus 120 singers. The result was just stupendous. (http://www.raaja.com/thiruvasagam.html)
(http://www.tis-usa.com/2004/06/project.html)
I’ve been listening to Hollywood film scores by many legends from Jerry Goldsmith to Alfred Newman and I can vouch Ilayaraaja belongs to these legends’ level. Even in his late 70’s/early 80’s film music you can notice the sheer brialiance of his works utiling even those small studio ensemble. He has done music in almost every genre from funk music to village type to Indian classical to Orchestral bombasts. Some call him a musician’s musician. Even the great Naushad & Zubin Mehta have praised him.
My point to all these is that Ilayaraaja doesn’t go out to publicise his work or himself as he’s a very self-contained & spiritual person. I only wrote all these to highlight that we have such a great talent in India and its about time we show the world/Hollywood the quality of this man’s works in films or theatre. And I hope one day you get to know Mr Ilayaraaja in person or in terms of film music.
Thank you so much for your time.
Anbu
(Singapore)
Respected SHEKHAR Sir,
Im based in AGRA-UP(INDIA)and a diehard fan of you.Though hadnt seen you since long on screen.
But a fan from those days when i first saw you on TELEVISION SCREEN performing DIGJAM SUITINGS / SHIRING ADD.Leading the whole generation following you.
Thats true …….you did all and moving strong in my HEART & MIND.
How can we meet i want to meet you and share some good stories with you which im sure only you can give the right shape.
Sir can we do so.Thats my life’s one of biggest requirement.
Looking forward for your kind reply.
THANKS
SHALABH SRIVASTAVA
+91-9897222596
Hello Sir,
How are you? My Name is Joseph John . I Am 26 Years of Age . And I Live In Aligarh. The Simple Reason Why I Want to contact you is that.
That I Have A Very different mindset about you and movies . I have seen almost all the movies of directors like stephen spielberg. And I Believe that if a person has got the talent he should be given atleast once chance to prove it and to show it to this world. My Philosophy of life is that every person should do something to be remembered of after his or her life ends. I Am not contacting you just for the sake of money fame glamour and all those materialistic things in this selfish world. I HAVE SOME GREAT SCRIPTS AS WELL TOTELL YOU ABOUT.I believe that we too can make movies like the matrix and minority report. which can prove that we are not inferior to personalities of hollywood like stephen spielberg and tom cruise . So If you think that we should meet then please contact me .
Thank You Very Much Sir.
Joseph John
Cell Number +919412272864
LandLine Number +915712741610
hi sir,
nice to see ur website, and it is touching, found u near to me.
I am thrilled with ur idea of film making, I always found masoom is the really a class inits own, I take this film for the script and screenplay and the bet usgage of the trolly first time.
inspiring by u I have started a forum in bangalore called digital film forum and did my first film festival here.
I am also writing some scripts these days
hoping to get an interaction with u sometime
take care
bye
shrikanth deshpande
Hi Shekhar
how do u react to people selling themselves on ur site?
Its really hilarious!
But then, its ego boosting.
yet it reminds me every moment of the day
that I am mortal
and flawed
and just a particle in the universe
Yes, you cannot forget that! if you were perfect there wouild be no life for you.
There would be nothing to seek and nowhere to go,
no universe to be one with!
Love,
Arunaraje
dearest Sir,
Aadab,
I can’t say that what ur for me,I m not ur fan .I am devotee of u ,I lov ur filmmaking style & laren very much coz Iwant to become a great director I keen to job with u Iam working in tv serials as an asst diroctor……..sir,chahat hai udaan ki……faile aasmaan ki…kiya aap mere rahbari karenge………………….Aman kabir
Hi Shekhar,
First of all I congratulate you for invading the Hollywood.But i will not be able to say whether on Bollywood front I like your work or not?
You are a director of very high calibre but as far as creativity is concerned that i found lacking.Masoom reminded me of Man ,Woman & child.Mr.India reminded me of Mr.X in Bombay.Bandit Queen was not a original story.It was based on a true story.
But But .. the way you treat the subject & present it on the screen is marvellous.
Another reason which makes me feel connected to you is I am also a chartered accountant like you .
Dear Mr. Shekhar Kapur,
I was born Hindhu but later converted to Buddhism in Japan where I was born and raised. I have read that you will not be directing the movie, ‘buddha’. I understand the intense difficulty to get the message of Buddha correctly as there are so many different sects. As for me I belong to SGI, Soka Gakkai International, a lay Buddhist organization with over members in 170 countries throughout the world and is the largest organization in Japan. We regard the Lotus Sutra with reverence and believe in the teachings of Nichiren Daishonin, a 13th century Buddhist monk of Japan.
The Lotus Sutra teaches that every single human being regardless of race, culture or social standing has the Buddha nature and is able to
bring it out thru the chanting of nam-myoho-renge-kyo. It is total empowerment of the human being and we believe that we can transform our predestined karma for the better which is so much more powerful than the Hindhu thinking that karma is predestined and so some people are locked in the chains of karma that they cannot break away from.
Hope that you will check it out someday. Our mentor, SGI President Ikeda, has been compared to Mahatma Gandhi of the 21st century and he has also met with Dr. Nelson Mandela. There is an exhibition called “Gandhi, King, Ikeda” whose exhibit was sponsored by Morehouse University where Martin Luther King. It has been shown throughout the world including India and recently Ireland where the influential people have become the advocates of these great men. SGI President Ikeda, according to many leading thinkers, is the only living example of Gandhi’s non-violence movement.
Anwyway my question is I have been looking eagerly at your website for any news on the movie you decidedt to direct, “Long Walk to Freedom” starring Morgan Freedman, I guess. Could you please please tell me if you are still working on this project or if you have declined directing it like The Buddha.
Awaiting your earliest response,
Sincerely and will much respect.
I just read that some John Rogers wrote the Isaac Asimov foundation trilogy as an action film for the usual hollywood reasons; does hollywood not hear how pissed off sci-fi fans are of all the hollywoodizing b.s. and hearing the same hollywoodizing b.s. excuses they give(the public is to stupid)?
I can’t believe that somebody hasn’t stepped up and pointed out the b.s. this is that we can’t do the foundation trilogy correctly. Just watch Forbidden Planet, WarGames, and oh yes! 2001! for films that have worked just fine thank you without being turned into a will smith anti-science/tech film; that is not what a Asimov book is for! Maybe we should just throw away civilization and humanity right now?!
Doesn’t anybody read books anymore? Don’t they know what makes them so good? Because they are about ideas! Live plays are proof positive that this whole hollywood conception of dumb spectator movies is a crime!
I have only watched your movie the Four Feathers and it is a very good film and i like it very much but in the special features in the Battle of Abu Klea you say that it was the first time the British square was broken and that they would have all been sluaghtered and the Mahdi walked away but in real life the desert coloumn was actual a few regiments under General Stewart and the square was opened by the dervish soldiers. The British officers made tiny squares of individual companies and formed the square again repulsing the Mahdis forces actual winning the day but stewart lost his life to a bullet and died after the battle. And the Square had been destroyed before at the battle of Tamai. But it was a very good movie.
Hi Shekhar,
Your recent post on Intentblog (Jan 3 ’06) has had me an a Kapur mood for a day or so, so this morning I woke early and rewatched Elizabeth, this time with your commentary (which I enjoyed).
I was surprised to find that one of my favorite scenes in the film was one you were dissatisfied with — that of Elizabeth and her ladies taking an open-air dancing lesson (you weren’t happy with it because it didn’t tell a story). I wanted to share with you that it told me a lot, though it didn’t appear to advance the narrative of the story per se. It told me that Elizabeth loved dance and music, her friends and her lover, that she was already queenly though very young and immature, that she could find happiness and grace when going about her daily tasks even in circumstances that limited her present and put her in potential deadly danger for the future, that she was always aware even while attending to those daily tasks, of what forces might be bearing down upon her, and those associated with her. It described the essence of Elizabeth’s character — strength, wit, grace, patience, passion, intelligence, endurance, flexibility, focus — which remained constant even though its expression was modified as she obtained more power, and grew in age and experience.
All this was conveyed with such lyricism, such beauty, that it almost makes my heart stop.
For me, a signature of the scene is the rose-colored sash that Elizabeth wears. It contrasts like a flame with everything else, and is a visual reminder that Elizabeth will alway stand out — not due to her royal birth, which only put her in the way of opportunity (how many other royals had already squandered that opportunity?), but due to her character and destiny, which were unique to her.
Thanks for such a beautiful scene in one of the best films of all time.
Cheers, Heather
Dear Mr.Kapur
I posted and you never replied. Is it because I proved you wrong?
hi sashi kad
read ur comment addressed to me quite late. almost five months later. thnx for responding. I dont know whether he really encourages any fresh talent or not? i hvn’t heard any stories as such.
but yeah i have a grouse against him. he replies or maybe reads also the comments of only his own circuit people.
There was a sense of Angst in your writing too. good that it validates the fact that mind cannot be repressed by mere alteration of space-time co-ordinates.
Hi Shekhar,
So many testimonials! So many people hoping to work with you. While it may be funny to some, I am sure it means the world to those who’ve written to you.
Just goes to prove how much you are admired for having made India proud with Elizabeth and Bandit Queen.
I like M. Night Shyamalan’s movies, but as an Indian, rather than and M. Night Shyamalan winning an Oscar, I would be happy if a Manoj Shyamalan wins.
I am glad that you are Shekhar Kapoor and not ‘S. King Kapoor’ !!
God bless.
Are you sure 22615 about this?!?
Dear Mr. Shekhar Kapur,
First of all I want to say that I am a huge fan! and I am very glad to find your website.
I read what you said about Urmila Matondkar after seeing Maine Gandhi ko Nahin mara where you compared her with a fresh flower or something and that her talent was untapped etc
I agree with everything you said about her. I think she is the BEST actress in bollywood, and seriously the filmakers in BW suck for not still taking her seriously, its so true that they havent even taken her acting capabilities and used them in their films.
I was wondering… why YOU are not casting her when YOU say that you love her and are blaming other directors for not taking her????
NOW please give her a role in one of your movies Mr. Kapoor!!!!!!
i like your creativity and thinking differently in your film as you involved common man,and reality of world in it with great art and continuity.congrats and all the best.i am story/song writer,stage and tv artist.i want to make good serial/films which give creative/positive message with enterainment to society.my plsure to work with such a great creator like you.long live your art and heart.regards : DURGESH OZA PORBANDAR GUJARAT 360575.MOB 9898164988 R 0286 2220044.CONGRATS AGAIN.I SEE RAIN IN THE HEAT OF GREAT SUMMER
sir i praise you too much for your nice pictures,if you have any serials then please let me know,thank so much
Dear Mr Kapur,
I recently watched your rendition of The Four Feathers, and I just wanted to say the directing was very well done. However, I’m very disappointed in a number of historical discrepancies. Your movie was based around the Gordon Relief Expedition and therefore was not a conquest to take over the Sudan, but rather to rescue General Gordon and evacuate the country of all Egyptians and Europeans. The battle of Abu Klea was not lost by the British, in fact the British inflicted heavy loses on the Mahdi’s numerically superior force and pushed on to the Nile, the uniforms of the British troops really should have been khaki and grey, only twenty red tunics were sent to the expeditionary force for the purpose of impressing the besieged occupants of Khartoum. Please try and be more accurate when depicting real events, I’m sure the battle was very horrific and your film does capture some of that realism, however bravery was shown on both sides, and I feel it’s an injustice to those who took part in these historic events to inaccurately depict history in this way.
Thanks for taking the time to read this.
hallo sir,i am satish jain from,bhind [chambal sambhag]m.p.iwatch your movie “baddit queen”many more time,good movies chambal problems but not solve,ihave good story,ihave new issue chambal people socity,i am show out india and abroad this condition with you.pleas reply my comment,thank.
I think that’s one of the biggest mistakes that people make when trying to analyze bollywood movies ….they try to analyze them with the same mindset that they’d analyze hollywood movies…my philosophy is “if you want to watch a hollywood movie, then watch a hollywood movie, if you want to watch a bollywood movie then watch a bollywood movie” They’re apples and oranges! some claim that bollywood movies are reminiscent of hollywood musicals from the 50s…i respectfully disagree… they’re two completely different genre that just happen to have musical elements to them…bollywood movies require a greater sense of disbelief than hollywood movies do, and they’re often critizised on this basis, however vice versa, if you ask an avid bollywood movie goer to critique a deeply philisophical hollywood movie, then they’d hate it as well… they serve a different market and require a different mindset when watching….bottom line don’t compare apples with oranges, appreciate them for what they are.
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