Filmmaker Aanand L Rai has been in the news lately with his film Raanjhanaa getting a re-release. However, the re-release has a twist. Eros International, the producers of the film, will be re-releasing the film with an AI-altered climax of the film. With the film scheduled to hit theatres on August 1, Aanand L Rai has once again reiterated that he is no way associated with the AI version of the film and that he or the team that actually made the film has nothing to do with it.
Aanand L Rai opposes Raanjhanaa re-release
On Thursday, Rai took to his Instagram feed and shared a still from the much-loved film starring Dhanush and Sonam Kapoor. Along with the image, he wrote, “The past three weeks have been surreal, and deeply upsetting.”
Sharing his feelings about watching the film`s climax being altered, he wrote, “To watch Raanjhanaa, a film born out of care, conflict, collaboration, and creative risk, be altered, repackaged, and re-released without my knowledge or consent has been nothing short of devastating. What makes it worse is the complete ease and casualness with which it’s been done. And yet, in the middle of all this, the support and solidarity from the industry, our audiences, and the larger creative community has reminded me of what Raanjhanaa stood for in the first place – connection, courage, and truth. I’m deeply grateful for that.”
The filmmaker made it clear that he has no role in the new version of the film. “Let me say this as clearly as I can: I do not support or endorse the AI-altered version of Raanjhanaa. It is unauthorised. I had no role in it. Neither did the team that made the film. And whatever it claims to be, it is not the film we intended, or made.”
Filmmaker calls it betrayal
He further wrote, “This was never just a film to us. It was shaped by human hands, human flaws, and human feeling. What’s now being circulated is not a tribute. It is a reckless takeover that strips the work of its intent, its context, and its soul. The idea that our work can be taken and modified by a machine, then dressed up as innovation, is deeply disrespectful. To cloak a film’s emotional legacy in a synthetic cape without consent, is not a creative act. It’s an abject betrayal of everything we built.”
“I’m speaking for everyone who helped bring this film to life. The writer, actors, composer, lyricist, technicians, and larger crew. None of us were consulted. None of us were heard.”
Finally, addressing the audience, he said, “If Raanjhanaa meant something to you, as it did to us, please know that this AI-altered version does not reflect who we were. Nor does it carry the spirit of the film we made.”