Wait, you don’t know what N.I.C.E is?

Dude.

What the fuck.

N.I.C.E = Nolan Is Cinema’s Emperor.

And anybody who believes that there’s no alternative to his form of art, automatically becomes an honorary member.

There are just 2 rules N.I.C.E bhakts follow very strictly: 

a) You should have seen every movie of his in IMAX.

b) Every time someone says they don’t like Nolan, you have to go “Kya baat kar raha hai? Tujhe Nolan nahin pasand? You clearly don’t know what good cinema means.”

I’ve been at the receiving end of it all so I know what it feels like. Before 2010, I was happily cocooned in my own cinematic world.

But then Inception released.

And everything changed. Before I knew it, I was surrounded by Nolan bhakts whose only job was to judge the cinematic sensibilities of those who begged to differ.

So to all those Nolan worshiping pseudo intellectuals, I just want to say one thing. 

He’s good.

But he isn’t the best. 

He isn’t the only one.

Yes, you heard me right.

And before you start getting exasperated about it, kindly hear me out.

I love watching masala flicks. I love watching mindless entertainment. I love watching time pass comedies. But that doesn’t, and shouldn’t, make me any less of an intellectual. 

And if it’s commercial and artistic viability we’re looking at, we have Anurag Kashyap and Rajkumar Hirani. 

No kidding. Just look at any movies they’ve made over the years and tell me if they come short of anything less than art.

Is there anything wrong in watching films for entertainment? No.

Is there anything wrong in getting laughs out of brainless comedies every now and then? No.

Is there anything wrong in not sticking to just one brand of cinema? Hell no.

Imagine this. I slog every single day at work from 10 in the morning to 7 in the evening. I have rent to pay, bills to take care of and limited finances to manage.

I’m already mired in the dark reality of everyday life. 

In such a scenario, is it too much to ask for 2.5 hours of pure escapism every now and then?

I don’t think so.

So kindly stop judging my artistic sensibilities on the yardstick of just one single director. Don’t let my cinematic choices be a yardstick to measure my intellect.

Nolan might be good. But with all due respect, Hirani and Kashyap resonate way more with my sensibilities.