Ashish Verma, who will soon appear in the web series Court Kacheri, has expressed his thoughts on the integration of AI in cinema. The actor, who is aware of the AI-altered ending of Raanjhanaa and the surrounding debate, expressed strong feelings about how using artificial emotions in a medium that requires a human touch is inappropriate. Verma, during his interview with OTTplay, shared the strong viewpoint, among other interesting revelations.
Ashish Verma on the use of AI in cinema and more
Ashish Verma opens up on AI addiction
Ashish Verma confessed to being a social media addict and feeling stuck the way his character in Court Kacheri feels stuck after pursuing law owing to his father’s strong influence. Ask him what situation he is stuck in, and Ashish shares, “I’m a social media addict. I uninstalled Instagram and told my wife I won’t use it again. Unfortunately, that very night, in the middle of the night, she noticed how I was hiding and installed it again.”
Further, probe him if the AI addiction has hit him yet, and Ashish points out how he tends to agree with the fake AI videos on reels. It is his wife who helps him distinguish between real and AI.
Ashish Verma on AI in cinema: Human emotions over artificial ones
He pointed out how it is weird that film endings are changed. “It’s weird how film endings change,” he says, hinting at the Raanjhanaa ending being changed. Ask him how he looks at AI entering cinema and changing how we have lived, and that actor says, “I’m not very sure about it. I understand that things change. There was an industrial revolution that happened, so there’s a transformational phase. There would be a lot of benefits with AI. We can achieve a lot with the help of it that would not have appeared possible previously.”
While he praises evolution, Verma emphasises that replacing human emotions is not acceptable. “Nonetheless, cinema is an art form. It is eventually about human expression and connection. If you remove humans and add artificial intelligence/artificial expression, I’m not very sure how much it is going to connect and how cool it is. Right now, I don’t think it’s cool, but you never know. It’s too nascent. I’m sure it would have its advantages, but it’s not sitting well,” the actor shared.
‘We need to understand the flip side’
In stating how AI might be here to stay and how it could affect every field, Ashish further clarified, “We need to understand how correct it is and what the flip side of it is. It is a very powerful tool, man, and can be misused. As long as it’s not misused (it should be okay).”
Raanjhanaa is available for streaming on OTTplay Premium, and Court Kacheri will also be out for viewing from August 13, 2025. So, have you subscribed yet?
