Imtiaz: I feel the audiences have moved on

Imtiaz Ali���s Love Aaj Kal is the biggest Bollywood hit of the year at the Chennai box-office.
So, it was, but natural, for him to be the cynosure of all eyes when he flew down to Chennai to be the chief guest at the audio launch of his Jab We Met remake Kanden Kadhalai on Friday morning at Sathyam Cinemas.
And after watching the songs from the Tamil remake, he won over the invitees at the function when he said in his speech, ���The Tamil director, Kannan, has corrected all the mistakes that I made in the original!���
Cheran, in his speech, said that Imtiaz had to be admired as ���...which director in Kollywood will make such a frank statement about his own film?���
Later, speaking exclusively to CT, Imtiaz said, ���My Jab We Met and Love Aaj Kal (LAK) cameraman is Nataraj Subramaniyam, a big fan of Tamil films and now, Natraj (popularly known as Nutty) is turning into an action hero in Kollywood.Thanks to him, I have seen a few Tamil films on DVDs.���
When asked about the huge success of his LAK in Chennai, Imtiaz said, ���Today���s audiences are the youth who are always looking for something different. I think I have been able to capture their mood on how love has evolved over the years. The basic concept of the film is how relationships were in the past and how they have changed today. That seems to have worked with the youth.���
But in Kollywood film circles, there is mixed feelings about LAK and nobody wants to remake it.
Says a film director who wanted to remake it, but backed out at the last minute, ���How can we show a heroine who has sex willingly with the hero before marriage and then chooses to part as friends? Later, she marries another guy and comes out of the marriage. It will go against the basic ���Thali��� sentiments in Tamil films. And above all, no hero here will be willing to do the role, as he is shown being mugged on the streets of San Francisco. Our heroes fight a dozen guys at the same time.���
When the incident was narrated to Imtiaz, he burst out laughing and said, ���Times are changing. LAK is the biggest Hindi hit in Chennai. I feel the audiences have moved on. It���s the filmmakers who are lagging behind. The audiences of today want their lead characters to be real people who, like all of us, make mistakes. The concept of heroism has changed. A hero is a person we can relate to and who is sensitive. Somebody has to push the envelope, I���m sure Tamil viewers will also accept such heroes.���