We had earlier reported about Shiva, the 1989 film, getting a grand re-release later this year. The iconic Ram Gopal Varma-Nagarjuna collaboration will hit theatres again on November 14, with a remastered sound mixing and 4K Visuals. On Friday, Ram Gopal Varma penned a long and reflective on the iconic protagonist he penned for his debut film, calling Shiva ‘almost Gandhian’ in a sense.

The veteran director divided his observations about Shiva all these years later into four elements — psychology, silence, violence, and power, which according to him formed the most definitive facets of Shiva’s character and made him the formidable force that he was.  

Describing the iconic protagonist figure as a man of ‘immense self respect and restraint,’ Ram Gopal Varma also surprisingly went on to describe Shiva as ‘almost Gandhian, adding, “He is a man who believes in peace but is forced to use violence to protect it.”

Ram Gopal Varma concluded his rumination by stating that Shiva is not a person, but ‘an idelogy stemming from a belief that a single uncompromising man can shake an entire system built on compromise.” The filmmaker also mentions the iconic character’s courage as the reason he is remembered by film-goers even 36 years later. Ram Gopal Varma also reflected on his growth and renewed understanding of the film and its protagonist, mentioning how he wrote the character out of instinct but now understands it better with maturity. 

Earlier, on many occasions, Ram Gopal Varma has spoken about how he was inspired by multiple films like The Way Of the Dragon, Jaws, Arjun, Kaal Chakra, Ardh Satya and many others while writing the script of Shiva. The director has also mentioned how he had borrowed from many of his own college experiences to write the college campus brawl scenes in the film.

Produced by Annapurna Studios and SS Creations, Shiva was a massive hit and also the recipient of 3 Nandi Awards that year.