Jun 17, 2026 6:00pm IST
Mahesh Bhatt on the Triumph of ‘Haunted 3D: Echoes Of The Past’: ‘It’s not easy to survive in the industry, with its dizzy successes and humiliating failures’ (EXCLUSIVE)
Mahesh Bhatt, the veteran whose first directorial, “Manzilein Aur Bhi Hain,” was released all of 52 years ago, is elated about the great opening of “Haunted 3D Echoes of the Past” last Friday. Sans hype or great promotions, the film took off with more than double the opening figures of its nearest competitor, “Main Vaapas Aaunga,” in a four-pronged race. The remaining two releases, Kangana Ranaut’s “Bharat Bhhagya Viddhata” and Manoj Bajpayee’s “Governor,” did not even come close.
In an Exclusive, Bhatt tells Variety India, “I am very happy for Vikram (Bhatt, director). He has been through a harrowing time recently and this proves that it is in the darkest moments in life that your best comes out, because that gives you the bounce, motivation and fuel to put in everything you have into your work.”
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The other films had good to great reviews. How do you look at the relevance of reviews today?
Mainstream, unpretentious movies that satisfy the taste buds of audiences determine everything. Ideally, every filmmaker wants the best of both, but if there is only praise and not the figures, there is disappointment. But there are brave filmmakers like Vikram, who don’t seek validation from outside and are content having made the film they wanted to make.
Frankly, we learned this way back when we began this journey: we must gratify and not edify the audience! When content is pouring in today from everywhere into your homes and smartphones, and there is this TikTok sensibility of 1-2-minute films finding takers, it is important to understand that Indian audiences in tier-2 and tier-3 centers decide what we think is the quality of a product. A filmmaker is thus closer to a trapeze artist, a snake-charmer, or a circus clown.
Films catering to a sensibility that can be called “evolved” will always be there, and frankly, that kind of “city” film was dominating for some time. As for reviews, there is no denying that a section of the audience is still influenced by reviewers and star ratings, but one must remember that all reviews are subjective. Ultimately, it is the word-of-mouth that counts, that first-day-first-show audience that says the film is good, and that alone brings more people in.
A leading multiplex chain had sidelined the film completely, but had to kowtow and include shows within hours.
Isn’t it better to start from uncertainty and go to certainty than ride the reverse way? (Laughs) This landscape is not new: Nobody knows the game! In Hollywood, there is a term called “Film God”. If he smiles and likes a film, it works. Otherwise, you may have the best of story, cast, or budgets, but the movie will not do well. Look at how a simply-made horror film like “Obsession” is doing so massively well.
Horror as a genre nearly always works.
That is universally accepted.
It is said that you have presented this film.
Actually, I have been involved in its writing. My association with my proteges is emotional, not professional and I owe them a hand, so I have worked on the story.
You are presenting this new film called ‘Naam — To Live is War’, which is titled after your 1986 hit…
That is because its director, Sidhaant Sachdev, is my great-grand assistant! Just like a great-grandchild (Laughs). You see, Vikram was my assistant, Mohit Suri his, and Sidhaant was Mohit’s assistant!
'Haunted 3D Echoes of the Past' has a lot of competition, with many releases on the day…
The final figures for all the films will be determined by the weekend. But for Vikram, well-begun is half-done. As the famous Greek-French filmmaker Costa Gavras told me, ‘My advice to filmmakers is that your movie should make just enough money so that you can live to make another film!’ Vikram was considered down and out, but will also do that now! His first film, “Madhosh,” released 32 years ago. It is not easy to survive here amid dizzying successes and humiliating failures. When you take a boat out to sea, you will face the waves. But durability has its own credibility.
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