‘Onwards & Upwards, always.’
Renowned film journalist Anupama Chopra has confirmed the closure of Film Companion, a famous web platform for entertainment journalism with content around cinema, television and web series.
The film journalist, who is also married to producer-director Vidhu Vinod Chopra, took to Instagram and shared a farewell note, looking back at the platform’s journey and revisiting some of their fondest and most successful memories.
While she confirmed Film Companion is shutting down, Chopra also revealed that the platform is branching out into FC Studios – a specialty division for long-form storytelling.
View this post on Instagram
Anupama Chopra also penned down some insightful thoughts about Film Companion’s inception and journey:
“10 years ago, this month, without thinking through about what the entrepreneurial life actually entails, we launched Film Companion. The name came from a line by the American philosopher and film critic Stanley Cavell. He said: ‘The writing about film that has meant most to me has the power of a missing companion. Our ambition was to be that missing companion, that friend you discuss movies, shows, trends and pet peeves with. You don’t have to agree but the conversation is robust and invigorating.’” Anupama Chopra wrote.
“It’s been a tumultuous ride. Creating credible, informative entertainment journalism, in video and text, that pays for itself is a formidable challenge in any landscape but more so in the current climate in which everything can be bought, including social media posts. But Film Companion was never a business – numbers are not my forte. It was a shared passion,” she said.
Anupama Chopra looked back on some memorable moments – interviewing Shah Rukh Khan in Lisbon, the viral interview featuring Vicky Kaushal and Katrina Kaif, open-air conversations with celebrities like Deepika Padukone – that gave the platform important milestones and made her journey worthwhile.
“Film Companion has had a blazing 10-year-run. As we wind up the show, I want to express my deepest gratitude to the wonderful people who toiled in the trenches with me. Each one of you got behind all my nutty ideas and multi-tasked beyond the call of duty to make them come alive. The platform flourished only because of the stellar team. And thank you to the wonderful community we built,” she said, and added, “Film Companion lives on in FC Studios– our speciality division for long-form storytelling. Our first documentary special will soon be on a streaming service – hopefully the start of many exciting projects to come. As one of my favourite actors once said, Picture abhi baaki hai mere dost. Onwards and Upwards.”
Check out the post below:
View this post on Instagram
Film Companion’s news was met with shock by the cinephile community. Many celebrities took to social media to express regret over their announcement, thanking them for the opportunities the platform has given them. Karan Johar made an Instagram post wishing them well:
View this post on Instagram
Several comments expressed similarly heartfelt sentiments.
“Always looked forward to insightful conversations.can’t believe this. Please come up with something like this one,” a user wrote.
“Loved ur last interview about how u forayed into the world of interviewing, especially about ur run-in with the Underworld. U r such a badass Anupama, How u managed this expose was so scintillating to hear about! Will remember u by ur trademark smile!!” another commented.
Anupama Chopra has not revealed the reason behind Film Companion’s closure. However, she has confirmed that she will move on to head the team at The Hollywood Reporter India.
