Zeishan Quadri slams ‘Immature’ Adipurush Writers

Zeishan Quadri, who was the screenwriter for Gangs of Wasseypur, slammed the writers of Adipurush.

Calling the writers “immature”, he said that research needed to be done on the Ramayan before writing such a film.

On the film and the backlash it received, Zeishan said:

“I feel the writers were immature, you cannot put dialogues in the way they first presented in the movie.

“And if you feel that this is how mythological events are narrated, then sorry, you are not telling a story.

“A film is a much larger scale and it has a worldwide release. I’m falling short of words for this.

“Whether you feel good or bad, but this was very immature writing and majorly it has upset the audience worldwide.

“Ramayan is not your life, you are just a writer.

“It is part of a religion and how can you take it so lightly?

“Even when we made a film like Wasseypur, we put in so much research, whether we are portraying things correctly or not.

“So, one needs to research their audience also.

“Ramayan has been created numerous times, any Indian would know about it irrespective of their religion.

“So you need to research the audience on how they will react, which I feel they missed out on.”

Said to be inspired by the mythological epic Ramayan, Adipurush was co-written by Om Raut and Manoj Muntashir.

However, it received backlash for its inappropriate representation of the lead characters Raghav, Janaki and Raavan.

Prabhas played Raghav while Kriti Sanon essayed the role of Janaki.

Saif Ali Khan portrayed the menacing Raavan.

When the filmmakers revealed the first look of Adipurush, there was widespread criticism for its “poor VFX and wrongful portrayal of the lead characters”.

The first objection came from Nepal due to the alleged wrongful portrayal of Janaki.

Other communities in India claimed that Adipurush hurt religious sentiments.

This prompted the filmmakers to announce that they would make changes, with Manoj Muntashir issuing an apology.

Adipurush was eventually released in cinemas in June 2023. However, it received negative reviews, with much of the criticism directed at the film’s screenplay, dialogues and visuals.

The film was previously slammed by Vivek Agnihotri, who said the audiences “would not accept anyone as God”.

A case is still pending in the Supreme Court.