Aanand L Rai’s 2013 romantic drama, Raanjhanaa, starring Dhanush and Sonam Kapoor, will be re-released in theatres on 1 August. However, to draw people to the theatres, producers Eros International decided to release it with a new ending ‘powered by Artificial Intelligence’. In an interview with SCREEN, Aanand fumed at the thought of his film being changed without his permission.
Aanand L Rai reacts to AI-tweaked ending of Raanjhanaa
Aanand, the director and co-producer of Raanjhanaa under Color Yellow Productions, says Eros did not consult him on this decision. He says he found out about it through social media and reached out to the production house to express his objection, but claims they didn’t see reason.
The AI-generated ending will see Dhanush’s Kundan have a ‘happy’ ending, unlike the original film. “I don’t get it, how can they do this? It’s an ending people have loved! If not the filmmaker, at least listen to the audience. What is a happy ending? It’s a tragedy, that’s an emotion. How can you meddle with emotions? The voice of the film lies in that ending,” fumed the filmmaker.
Aanand also pointed out that this move by Eros sets a dangerous precedent, with studios taking it upon themselves to tamper with films using AI. Eros has reportedly sold the new print to Upswing Entertainment, a distributor in Tamil Nadu, which the filmmaker believes is them ‘testing new waters’.
“They say, AI is the future. Everybody knows that. But then use it for the future or for the present. Don’t use it to distort the past! If you buy a portrait by an artist, you can add a moustache to it, if you like. But you definitely can’t resell that for commercial gain. Next thing we know, they may change the climax of Sholay (1975) by keeping both Jai (Amitabh Bachchan) and Veeru (Dharmendra) alive,” he pointed out.
About Raanjhanaa
Raanjhanaa garnered a fan base through the years despite polarising views on how love is explored in the film. At the end of the film, Kundan is shot at a public rally, and his love interest, Zoya, played by Sonam, is aware of the conspiracy. Kundan doesn’t fight to save himself because of his love for Zoya. Abhay Deol played Akram Zaidi / Jasjeet Singh Shergill, her lover in the film. Raanjhanaa was a success at the box office, earning ₹93.97 crore worldwide, according to Sacnilk.
