Shekhar Kapur has no plans to direct 'Mr India' sequel

Mumbai: Filmmaker Shekhar Kapur, who directed the 1987 hit "Mr India", said he had no intention to step in for the sequel.

"Mr India" producer Boney Kapoor has recently announced plans to come up with a sequel to the hit fantasy drama, starring Anil Kapoor and Sridevi.

The film, about a man who discovers the formula to become invisible and uses its powers to fight evil forces, was the only commercial Bollywood blockbuster that Kapur directed.
"It has become such a big hit, (if I) make it now or repeat it, we will spoil it. I have made and done whatever I wanted to. It should be made with another director," Kapur, known for films such as "Masoom", "Bandit Queen" and Hollywood film series "Elizabeth", said at the Jagran Cinema Summit here.

The filmmaker also spoke about his much ambitious project "Paani", which never took off, and hoped that director SS Rajamouli's "Baahubali" may pave a way for it.

"My most fascinating project still remains 'Paani'... In a way SS Rajamouli set the trend. I really admire him. He told us when you have a really big story to tell, narrate it in two parts.

"It ('Paani') is a story I've written over many years. Who says you need to tell all in one part? You can do it in two. So wish me luck."

He revealed that he would soon start working on a film about martial arts legend Bruce Lee.

Kapur also spoke about several opportunities of releasing a film on different mediums other than theatres.

"Today films are not seen in theatres alone. India has 9,000-10,000 screens, while China, on the other hand, adds 15 screens daily. We have to move away from a theatrical release as today there are a lot of people watching films but on different platforms.
"We have to find platforms beyond theatrical release, we have to experiment and the opportunities are huge (to release the film), we have cell phones and digital space. We have 800 million cellphone users, it's a market that filmmakers should explore."

The director said as filmmakers and storytellers, one needed to adapt to new platforms.