On this special episode of The Playlist Podcast, Charles and Mike speak with acclaimed filmmaker Ramin Bahrani about his latest feature, “The White Tiger,” which is arriving on Netflix on January 22. The film tells the story of an Indian man that is so excited to be a servant for a wealthy family, but eventually, he begins to see the inequality and dreams of a better life. And unfortunately, as we discuss in the podcast, the film has taken on new meaning in the era of the pandemic.
Speaking to Bahrani, we ask about how, in a time where the pandemic kills more poor than rich and most people are struggling to pay rent while the world’s wealthiest make billions, “The White Tiger” has become a story that is more global and universal than it was when it was originally developed, based on the novel of the same name by author Aravind Adiga.
“I was talking to Scott Stuber, the head of Netflix, and he really responded very positively to the first cut of the film,” explained Bahrani. “And he said, ‘We knew this was a very global film when we greenlit it to get made, we knew it had potential to be global…’ But I didn’t understand actually until he said that with this pandemic, the film seemed more relevant, sadly, now than it did even before we set out to make it. And that was the first time it hit me what he was saying. And he was right, the film is frighteningly more relevant than it had ever been before.”
The filmmaker even spoke about a feature that he was hoping to make but never came together, simply known as “The Silicon Valley Project.” Unfortunately, years after it fell apart, Bahrani is still haunted by his tale of haves and have-nots in California between those that live in an impoverished area known as The Jungle and those only 20 minutes away in Palo Alto. But as Bahrani explains, sometimes the story just slips away from you.
“I lost the tail of it,” he said. “You know, ideas and projects are like a snake you’re trying to hold onto and it keeps slipping out of your hands. And if you’re not careful, it’s gone.”
READ MORE: Criterion Adds ‘The Parallax View,’ ‘Smooth Talk’ & 2 Ramin Bahrani Films For February
And as for future projects, don’t expect a Marvel or DC superhero film from Bahrani anytime soon. In fact, he hints that a studio did approach him about a certain type of franchise film, but Bahrani had to say no.
“If I did tell you what studio, very, very similar to [Marvel], offered me something and I said no, you’d be surprised,” said Bahrani. “They were really cool people and the project seemed interesting but it just didn’t match my vision or mission, I think.”
You can hear our full interview with Ramin Bahrani below, where he also talks about his lovely friendship with Roger Ebert, and you can watch “The White Tiger” when it arrives on Netflix later this week.
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