Exclusive | Vivek Agnihotri on chances of sending The Vaccine War to Oscars

The Vaccine War was like a detox for us after enduring pain during the making of The Kashmir Files said Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri as he discussed his latest release with MidDaycom in an exclusive interview The filmmaker hoped that the countrys first bioscience film would inspire the youth to choose science as a career and contribute to Indias scientific developmentWhen asked Vivek whether box office figures and commercial success matter to him more than critical appreciation and awards he said There are 34 milestones in every filmmakers career Commercial success is one of them For example our film is made on a budget of Rs 125 crores I have to collect at least Rs 25 crores at the box office to break even Whatever is earned above that is my profit Yes I do expect that and for two reasons If my films are successful commercially I will be able to make more movies that are offbeat People arent easily willing to invest in unconventional projectsHe further added Critical acclaim is of two types In the first case you pay money to critics to write good about your films If you dont they wont Secondly people who matter to me are the public intellectuals thinkers writers columnists and those who make grand narratives of the country Its a great achievement when they appreciate your film The Tashkent Files was a sleeper hit but my earlier film Buddha In A Traffic Jam didnrsquot work commercially Whoever watched it loved it a lot They promoted it through word of mouth and made it a cult film That gave me confidence I never think much about awards I neither go for ceremonies Almost every award function wanted me for The Kashmir Files but I refused With The Vaccine War even if 12 youngsters get inspired to become scientists that would be a real successThe Vaccine War was a good detoxCalling The Vaccine War a detox film after The Kashmir Files Vivek revealed how the film was conceptualised We were going to Kashmir for The Kashmir Files but the lockdown was imposed and the entire team was confined to their homes In March 2020 people were worried about the future A few months later there was hope as our scientists developed the vaccine We were back to our normal lives We dont know about the people who made this possible They were never in the media While we were researching for the film we learnt that not many Indians know about our scientific achievements After The Kashmir Files we had the liberty to make The Vaccine War Instead of being trapped in making The Kashmir Files 2 or The Delhi Files we thought it would be a great way to detox from the pain we suffered from the making of The Kashmir Files It was a good detox to tell this inspiring story What motivated us was the fact that most of the contribution came from women who donrsquot get their dueThe Vaccine War getting taxfree would be a bonanzaThe Kashmir Files was declared taxfree in Uttar Pradesh Gujarat Madhya Pradesh Bihar Uttarakhand Haryana Karnataka Tripura and Goa Vivek hoped the same for The Vaccine War It would be a bonanza if The Vaccine War gets taxfree but that wasnt the intention while making it he addedIf I have to go to the Oscar Irsquoll go directlyTovino Thomas Malayalam blockbuster 2018 based on the 2018 Kerala floods is Indias official selection for the Oscars Congratulating the team on the achievement Vivek reacted to whether he would love to take The Vaccine War to the global platform We dont think of Oscars or any awards while making a film For me what matters the most is the National Award Irsquom an Indian and believe in the top honour of my country Our films are set in the Indian milieu and sociopolitical situation and to be recognised by the President is a matter of honour Itrsquos not that we make movies for a National Award but the themes of our films are better suited for that If I have to go to the Oscar Irsquoll go directly Congratulations to 2018 for being the official selection for the Oscars Im happy that the best one has been chosen Vivek sharedIndian media is now understanding my template of filmmakingVivek spoke at length about his equation with the Indian media He revealed people are now understanding his style of filmmaking which is far from conventional storytelling Irsquove been making movies for a long time There are times when the media likes you or doesnt appreciate you Even filmmakers at times dont agree with the media I make sociopolitical films and my agenda is that my movies should start a conversation I have done films on controversial subjects in films like The Tashkent Files The Kashmir Files and now The Delhi Files I will be dealing with the topic of Partition People normally dont talk about these subjects fearing controversy but as a filmmaker it is my duty to raise this issue and create awareness I want my audience to do their research and come up with their own conclusions My films donrsquot have a conclusion I leave them up to the audience Media is finally understanding my style of filmmaking because previously they were accustomed to watching conclusive films I have done docufiction films and more into investigative journalism smiles I have characters from both sides and want my audience to judge them The Kashmir Files got polarised views and The Vaccine War also divides a line The Vaccine War isnrsquot a jingoistic film it celebrates ordinary Indians doing extraordinary thingsThe filmmaker continued Most of the journalists who come from smaller towns or even from Mumbai excluding those from South Bombay love me Theyrsquore more rooted in the Indian culture Journalists who have an elite lens or look at my work from a particular lens will not like my films because it disrupts their supremacy and elitismVivek often describes his films as nonBollywood Speaking about how he categorises The Vaccine War he replied This is my most complete feature film Whoever has seen it said the film is a complete package of emotions We have done 20 screenings of the film before its theatrical release and every person said it will make the audience feel proud of the women around them I believe a film has to stimulate emotions and intelligence I am not saying that Irsquom a complete filmmaker Irsquom still a student and still learningThe Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri UniverseWith films like The Tashkent Files The Kashmir Files and now The Delhi Files does he wish to create his own movie universe He promptly replied You have to create a universe when you donrsquot have your own universe People who see my films are my universe