Ram Gopal Verma ki Aag was released yesterday. And almost all the reviews and critics haven't said anything much different from what had been expected.Creative arrogance is a good thing, backed by confidence but it doesn't save a bad movie. Not Amitabh Bachchan, nor Mohanlal, nor Ajay Devgan, nor the three of them put together with their combined muscle, can elevate a half baked script to a worthwhile movie fare.

Just when you were coming to terms with this abomination (yes, nothing else would suffice), there comes the next sledge hammer blow to my sensibilities..Pritish Nandy has bought the rights of Sholay for $100 million,and plans to make - listen to this, a prequel, a sequel and a full-length animation feature (so help me dear Lord!) in addition to the modern day remake.

So, it's going to be yet another version of the classic movie, ripped apart, pasted into grotesque caricatures, airbrushed and packaged for public consumption.

All made and marketed based on the single factor that the average Indian movie goer is a gullible simpleton.

When will they learn? Mr. Pritish Nandy, the very answer to the question that had you dreaming dollar signs in the first place is staring you in the face. Look around, go through the reactions of the public after watching the remix of the year. And think about four more editions of the same thrust upon us, the viewers to watch and enjoy after paying our hard earned money. According to media reports, the production for the animated version begins mid-September. So, its been decided. Where has creativity gone? What makes the likes of PNC think about what the public wants to see are remakes of classics? Where do these marketing wizards think about the sensibilities that drive the biggest marquee in the world? Om Shanti Om is on the floors as a watered down version of Karz,with enough gimmicks stuffed in to guarantee initial draw to the theaters. Sir Himesh has another in the pipeline with Satish Kaushik. Ram Gopal Verma is eating humble pie basking in the arrogance and waning light of a handful of crime sagas that graced the Indian screen. Open your eyes O Men of Unlimited Wealth and Limited Public Perception. Look very carefully as the whole business proposition of $100 million is not the usual run-o-the-mill magnitude that is seen in movie production. People are intelligent.They know the good from the bad. It is that simple. You can cloak all these in the cloudy and hazy jargon of marketing spin and drivel. But think about it. If two production examples cant make you open your eyes, God save you. And us. The constant viewers. From the nagging question that seemed to have popped up in recent days.. 'Am i going to die of a remix overdose, Lord am I?"