In a recent development, makeup artist Shaan Muttathil has hit back at director Anurag Kashyap over the latter’s critical remarks regarding star entourages. Muttathil, known for his work with celebrities like Jacqueline Fernandez and Radhika Merchant, addressed Kashyap’s comments made on the Phitte Muh podcast, asserting that Kashyap lives in a cinematic bubble that doesn’t necessitate entourages, unlike most mainstream films.
“Anurag sir operates in his own world, his bubble” Muttathil said. “He wouldn’t accept a movie for the same amount as a newcomer director. There’s a lot of jealousy involved, and I understand it. We, as makeup artists, often earn more than managers, assistant directors, and even some in the camera department.”
Muttathil elaborated on the contrasting nature of Kashyap’s films compared to those of directors like Karan Johar and Mohit Suri. “Anurag doesn’t understand the need for an entourage because he doesn’t make movies where there are chiffon sarees and blow-dried hair. His films are set in villages with heroines in ₹250 cotton sarees who wake up and cry. This doesn’t reduce the need for entourages in other types of films.”
Addressing Kashyap’s frustrations with the high costs of makeup and hair, Muttathil commented, “Of course, he can lose his temper hearing ₹1.5 lakh for makeup and hair when his heroines don’t require it. But there are only about ten of us who command such fees. I wouldn’t even get a call from him unless he needed someone to accentuate dark circles and frizzy hair.”
Kashyap’s original comments, made during an interview with Janice Sequeira, highlighted the extravagant expenses associated with stars. “Somebody has a chef who charges ₹2 lakh per day to make this strange healthy food. It looks like bird feed. The portions are so small.”
Further expanding on the issue in an interview with Humans of Cinema, Kashyap criticized the misallocation of funds in filmmaking. “A lot of money goes into the entourage rather than the film itself. Even in remote shooting locations, a car will be sent hours away to fetch a five-star burger for a star.”
The exchange underscores the ongoing debate about the financial priorities and extravagances within the film industry.
