Thaindian News

New Delhi, March 21 (IANS) Internationally acclaimed Indian director Shekhar Kapur has proved his mettle in the art of filmmaking, but in his personal life he says he hasn’t been as successful. Sharing the reasons for the failure of his two marriages - first with Medha and then with singer-actress Suchitra Krishnamurthy, he said: “I am a bad husband.

“When two people love each other they have to give each other enough personal space to grow as individuals,” he is quoted as saying in an interview to CNN’s special edition of “Talk Asia IBN” to be aired Saturday.

After spending more than a decade in Hollywood he has returned to India for his dream project “Paani” (Water). The film, which has a powerful social concept behind it, is a love story set in the future, where a global shortage sees water becoming a tradable commodity.

“Water is the biggest issue internationally. Most of the wars in the world are now being fought over water. They’re saying water is going to be the new oil. Cities are running out of water everywhere. And when a concentrated body of 20 million people run out of water, there’s going to be an immediate war.”

With his unique advantage of having experienced two cultures and two key film industries - Indian and British - Kapur is considered an authority of cinema, and arts in general, in India.

When asked about the appeal of Asian films outside the continent, especially given the diversity of cultures, Kapur said: “India is used to making films of diversity and making films that actually run anywhere.”

“In a few years, we’ll still make ‘Spiderman 6 or 7′. It’ll make a billion dollars in its first year, $700 million will come from Asia. And when ‘Spiderman’ takes his mask off, he’ll either be Chinese or Indian.”

Kapur, who made films like “Masoom” and “Mr. India” in India, and “Elizabeth” in Hollywood, feels the world is changing.

He said: “We’re into what I call the influence of economies” and is confident that “India and China are creating their own brands”.

Kapur is convinced that “because of the new media, 90 percent of the new Facebooks (website) will be people from Asia and 80 percent of everything that goes on to the YouTube website will be Asian. And then you will be sitting here with an American director and saying how can you make American-Hollywood films international when Asian films are dominating the world?”

Besides being involved in the film industry, the multi-talented director also shares his love for creating comic book characters - the reason he co-founded Virgin Comics and Animation with British entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson and author Deepak Chopra.