Kamal Hassan advocates need for Regional School of Drama

At an interaction during the FICCI Media and Business Entertainment conclave here with noted Hollywood producer Barry Osborne, famous director Priyadarshan, besides actors Jayaram and Ramesh Aravind, he also lauded Hindi cinema when he said acting standards has gone up many notches.

"Suddenly it has improved so much and there is more sensible acting. We envy it," he said.

To this, Priyadarshan, known for his string of Hindi hits starring Akshay Kumar and Paresh Rawal, said that vibrant theatre in Gujarat and Maharashtra played a key role.

Intervening, Hassan said, "We have killed Tamil theatre. We need a regional school of drama on the lines of NSD."

He however heaped praise on the quality of Tamil theatre and said it was known for its stand-up comedians like S Ve Shekher and 'Crazy' Mohan, the latter being almost a regular part of the actor's ventures.

The professionals speaking on '100 Years of Indian Cinema', including Osborne, batted for promoting small films with Hassan saying he himself produced small-budget films.

"It gives the freedom to express your ideas quickly without any financial pressure," he said.

Turning nostalgic, the actor recalled his team had completed the critically acclaimed 'Pushpak' (Pesum Padam in Tamil) which has no dialogue, for around Rs 35 lakh.

"We spend almost Rs 35 lakh a day on Viswaroopam (his latest under production venture)," he said drawing peals of laughter from the audience.

He wished he did more small-budget movies as they "enhance stardom."