
Anurag Kashyap Says Netflix Co-CEO Ted Sarandos Is “Dumb”
Photo: Instagram
India-West News Desk
MUMBAI- Anurag Kashyap has publicly criticized Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos, labeling him “the definition of dumb” for his remarks regarding the streaming giant’s early India strategy, particularly concerning the series “Sacred Games.”
Sarandos recently discussed Netflix’s initial approach in India on Nikhil Kamath’s “People by WTF” podcast. Reflecting on the 2018 launch of “Sacred Games,” Netflix’s first Indian original series co-directed by Kashyap and Vikramaditya Motwane, Sarandos stated, “I thought this is going to be great. People in India love movies. This is a TV show that feels as big as a movie. Has movie stars.”
He acknowledged the show’s novelty but admitted, “I didn’t realize that we were going to be, like, introducing a brand-new kind of entertainment to a country the size of India, because there was nothing else like it.” Sarandos suggested that if he “did it all over again,” he might have “done ‘Sacred Games’ a couple of years later and did some things that were a little more populist programming.” He added that Netflix anticipated a “slower journey to get to where we want to get to, but that it’s a great prize at the end of the day.”
Kashyap retaliated on social media, suggesting Sarandos “should have started with ‘Saas Bahu’… he would have done well. Which he is doing now.” He continued, “I always knew the tech guys are dumb when it comes to storytelling but @tedsarandos is the definition of dumb is what I didn’t know. Good to discover that. This explains everything now.”
Kashyap’s “Saas Bahu” reference points to the highly successful Indian soap opera “Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi,” a production by Ekta Kapoor’s Balaji Telefilms, which recently announced a creative partnership with Netflix.