The 53rd International Film Festival of India (IFFI), which ends today, saw a lot of topics being discussed in various sessions, workshops and masterclasses. One of the issues that was spoken about was the corporate culture in the film industry. The session, that had filmmakers Anees Bazmee, Vikas Bahl, Abhishek Sharma, Mahaveer Jain and trade analyst Komal Nahta as the guest speakers, also saw questions about whether the film industry truly had a mafia culture being addressed.

When a member from the audience member asked if the reason behind the industry being divided was a certain ‘heroine’ who recently raised the issue of ‘mafia culture’ in Bollywood, Bazmee answered, “Mujhe aisa lagta hai, Hindustan mein jo sabse soft target ho sakta hai woh film industry hai. You abuse it, say that nobody works here the entire day, and heroes and heroines do drugs. [If that is true] Then who are those actors who report to a film set at five in the morning, and keep working till three at night?”

The 60-year-old added, “Jitne ilzaam hain, aap saare laga dijiye. I have been in this industry for many years now, and there’s no workplace with as many beautiful people as this one.”

As for the narrative that drugs are prevalent among actors, Bazmee said, “Mujhe lagta hai jaan boojh kar kayi logon ke beech aisa bola gaya, taaki iss line ko badnaam kar do.”

He said, that people want to defame people in showbiz and make the profession look dangerous. “I am from the film line, and I am proud that I am not in any other line of work,” he added.

The filmmaker also mentioned that he feels it’s his duty to help new people in the industry in whatever way possible and so he always tries his best to guide them.