Ram Gopal Varma Calls Ranveer Singh’s ‘Dhurandhar’ His ‘Best Watch in the Last 20 Years’ at Red Lorry Film Festival 2026

Filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma reflected on the making of his cult classic Shiva during a conversation following a special screening of the film at the Red Lorry Film Festival by BookMyShow in Mumbai. During the session, Varma also shared his thoughts on contemporary cinema, saying, “Dhurandhar is the best film that I have watched in the last 20 years.” ‘Dhurandhar 2’: Yami Gautam To Make Cameo Appearance in Ranveer Singh’s Espionage Thriller in Crucial Hospital Scene? Here’s What We Know.

Ram Gopal Varma Talks About ‘Shiva’

Speaking about the origins of Shiva, Varma said the film was driven by his instinct to make something he personally wanted to watch. “In making the film, probably because I was not experienced, I had never spent time in the industry and I just had this feeling, I want to make a film which is what I want to see. I think that is the nearest to true expression,” he said.

He also acknowledged that the film drew inspiration from several sources. “Having said that, it is not like a completely original film. I had influences of quite a lot of films, including from real life incidents and some people I knew, ” Varma said.

The filmmaker revealed that he only recently revisited the film while working on its restoration. “A very surprising thing is I only saw the film after 35 years after its release, roughly in November, six months back, because we were trying to restore it. I reviewed the audio and the whole soundtrack and that is the first time I saw it,” he said.

Varma also spoke about the technical experimentation that shaped the film’s style. “So that way I happened to be the first cameraman in India to use a Steadicam camera. And within a year of Shiva release, more than 20 Steadicams were imported because of the demand,” he said.

Reflecting on his filmmaking approach, Varma added, “To start with, I disagree with this label of audience. Because they are not like a bunch of animals with a single mind. They are all different people with different sensibilities and taste.”

Discussing the now-iconic cycle chain moment from the film, Varma explained the thinking behind the sequence. “The most obvious thing is the cycle. Once I thought about it, everybody loved the idea,” he said, noting that he wanted the character to create a weapon from something naturally available in the environment. Seedance 2.0: RGV Declares ByteDance AI Video Tool ‘Murderer’ of Film Industry Leading to ‘Liberation’ and ‘Ultimate Democratisation’ (See Post).

Reflecting on fear and decision-making early in his career, Varma said experimentation came naturally to him. “I wasn’t scared because I didn’t have the knowledge to be scared,” he said.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 13, 2026 07:01 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).