Chennai, June 8 : Actor and parliamentarian Kamal Haasan has now disclosed that his critically acclaimed superhit film 'Pushpak', directed by veteran director Singeetham Srinivasa Rao, was made on a budget of just Rs 15 lakhs and that if the film had been made today, it would have collected Rs 200 crore.

Speaking at a pre-release event of director Singeetham Srinivasa Rao's upcoming film 'Sing Geetham' in Chennai, Kamal Haasan recalled his experience of working with the veteran director on several films including Pushpak, which received critical acclaim for being a film without dialogues.

Kamal Haasan pointed out that cinema was all about passion and that business only came later but now, filmmakers were first looking at the business aspect and then making films.

He said, "Cinema is all about passion. And then only, it becomes a business. We are doing it the other way around. We now check how much a film will make -- 100 crores, 200 crores, 300 crores. No, the day we made Pushpak for 15 lakhs, we felt like we made 150 crores. But that's not an exaggeration. It must have already collected more than 200 crores. That's the truth of the industry. We don't realise. We don't even fully monetise our films. We are learning now. But he (Singeetham Srinivasa Rao) has travelled from that time of passion and his passion has not dwindled at all and I don't see why the industry should lose its passion."

Showering praise on director Singeetham Srinivasa Rao for being ahead of times, Kamal Haasan said, "He's always ahead of Gen Z. And I'm happy to celebrate a young man like Singeetham Srinivasa Rao. Age is a nuisance. But mind can surpass it. And he's a great example. And I'm learning. In that, I want to be his assistant director."

For the unaware, legendary filmmaker Singeetham Srinivasa Rao has returned to the directorâ??s chair at the remarkable age of 94 with 'Sing Geetham', which is slated to hit screens on June 11 this year.

With a career spanning decades and nearly 60 films across multiple languages, Singeetham Srinivasa Rao, who is known to have delivered several iconic classics including the Kamal Haasan-starrer 'Pushpak', has consistently redefined cinematic storytelling in India.

'Sing Geetham' is being claimed as Indiaâ??s first musical fantasy. The film has been produced by Nag Ashwin under the prestigious banners of Vyjayanthi Movies and Swapna Cinema and features Ayaan, Ahilya Bamroo, and Shalini Kondepudi in the lead.

/IANS