Hideo Kojima’s love for cinema is something that we all are familiar with but his admiration for Indian cinema is something that we didn’t know we needed.
These past 2 years were nothing less than an exceptional year for the Indian cinema. With the international success of RRR (2022) and S.S. Rajamouli getting recognition from popular personalities like the Vampire Diaries fame Joseph Morgan, Avatar director James Cameron, and many more. Bollywood has always been popular in foreign, here we are talking about mainstream Hindi cinema. But did you know Japanese video game designer Hideo Kojima is a true admirer of Indian cinema?
The film that made him hooked on to Indian cinema was Muthu (1995), which is a Tamil film from south starring Superstar Rajinikanth and Meena.
Hideo Kojima
Hideo Kojima is the creator of the 2019 video game ‘Death Stranding’ published by Sony Interactive Entertainment. The play station 4 game was released in 2019 and is the first project made by Hideo Kojima after his departure from Konami Group Corporation back in 2015.
He is often called an “auteur of video games” which is true for a fact as he developed his love for art, cinema and literature since young age. His unconditional love for cinema is evident as he claims that his body is filled with 70% film instead of water.
“The human body is supposed to be 70 percent water. I consider myself 70 percent film.”
Death Stranding
Hideo Kojima rose to prominence after he created the Metal Gear franchise published by Konami in 1987. The critically acclaimed stealth game has sold over 60 million units so far. His unconventional way of storytelling and visionary style in creating different cut scene is just a few pointers that makes him and his video games different than other projects. His love for cinema is visible in his work with the cinematic and offbeat plots that he experiments with.
Rajinikanth’s Muthu (1995)
The Metal Gear Solid creator started watching Indian movies way before RRR, the first film that made him explore Indian cinema and Indian art is a movie named Muthu starring Raghuvaran, Rajinikanth, Meena which was a blockbuster hit not only in India but also in Japan. The film made a theatrical run for more than 100 days and when released in Japan in 1998, the audience welcomed it with open hearts as the movie became a massive hit and was a huge success there. The film was later on remade in Kannada also.
After watching Muthu, he even bought the OST too and then discovered the film work of Aamir Khan. The Lagaan actor is popular all over the world for his exceptional acting skills and his contribution to cinema itself. His popular works include Dangal (2016), PK (2014), Taare Zameen par (2007).
Hideo Kojima Refers Rajamouli as the Creator God!
“I started watching Indian movies after “Muthu” was released in Japan in 1998. (bought the OST too) At that time, I was into Rajinikanth and also “Robot”. After that, “3 Idiots” got me into Amir Khan. “Dangal” and “PK.” Then I came across “Baahubali” by the creator god.”
During the promotions of RRR, Hideo Kojima and Rajamouli met at his own studio where the Bahubali director was scanned, the speculations at the time were that Kojima Productions could use the face design of Rajamouli for their future endeavours just like how they did it with Norman Reedus.
Not just Aamir khan, the video game creator is also a huge fan of Bollywood’s King Khan. He tweeted after he watched Pathaan which he loved and he admired the work of Shah Rukh Khan and Deepika Padukone.
Also Read Shah Rukh Khan: The King of Romance in His Sweet Boy Era
