3 min readKochiFeb 18, 2026 10:07 PM IST
Amid growing concerns over the rise and popularity of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and its potential impact across various fields, legendary director Shekhar Kapur recently shared his two cents on the technology’s possible influence on cinema. Maintaining that there could be AI-created stars in the future, he recalled an incident when his cook approached him with a script for Mr India 2 created using a generative AI chatbot.
Kapur explained that unlike human celebrities, AI-created stars won’t refuse to show up for work due to health issues or ask for a raise. “Agar AI creative star ban gaya, wo beemar nahi hogi agar heroine hai. Hero hai to beemar nahi hoga, na kahega ‘arey main nahi aata shooting pe,’ ‘meri price badha do’ – you own it (If AI becomes a creative star, the heroine won’t fall ill, nor will the hero. It won’t say, ‘Hey, I’m not coming to the shoot’ or ‘increase my fee,’ because you own it),” he said during a conversation with Times Now. Noting that AI isn’t merely a spectacle, he stated, “It’s the beginning of a new India.”
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Recalling the instance when his cook brought him a script for a sequel to his 1987 classic Mr India, starring Sridevi, Anil Kapoor, and Amrish Puri in the lead roles, Kapur said, “When I asked him, ‘how did you write it so well,’ he said, it’s from ChatGPT, and that’s the bottom of the pyramid coming up.” The director added, “Jitni aap badi-badi picture hain, certainty pe hoti hai. AI can tell you and do it for you. Rs 300 crore ki film, ab woh bachha bana dega, 2000 rupees mein (All these big-budget films you see are based on certainty. AI can tell you and even do it for you. Now, a kid will be able to make a Rs 300 crore film for just Rs 2,000).”
Kapur further maintained that 50 per cent of female influencers worldwide are “not real” and “AI-created.” This, he claimed, was because women wear makeup, making it easier for AI to get their skin tone right, whereas men don’t wear makeup.
Shekhar Kapur reacts to AR Rahman’s ‘communal’ claim
Reacting to the recent controversy over Oscar-winning composer AR Rahman’s claim that he had been getting less work over the last eight years, which he suggested may be due to communal reasons, Kapur noted that faith and religion were different. “I have never noticed it. I don’t even know. I have never realised. I don’t think about it,” he replied when asked if there was a communal divide in the industry.
