'I HATE MICHAEL': Satya-maker Ram Gopal Varma on why he 'hates' Michael Jackson

Filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma shared an emotional and deeply personal note on late pop icon Michael Jackson after watching the upcoming biographical film Michael. In a lengthy post titled “I HATE MICHAEL”, Varma reflected on the shock of Jackson’s death and the profound impact the King of Pop had on his life and creative journey.

Recalling June 25, 2009 — the day Michael Jackson died — Varma described waking up to television screens flashing the headline “Michael Jackson is Dead,” calling it one of the most disturbing moments of his life. He said he initially believed it was a nightmare before realising the news was true.

The director of 1998 hit movie Satya also went down memory lane to his engineering college days in Vijayawada in 1984, when a friend introduced him to Jackson’s iconic Thriller video at a small video parlour. Varma said the experience “hit him like a punch in the gut” and completely transformed his understanding of music videos and visual storytelling.


Praising Jackson’s legendary performances in songs such as Beat It, Billie Jean, Smooth Criminal, Black or White and Bad, Varma said the pop superstar became an “unreachable benchmark” for filmmakers and choreographers across the world.


“The scandals and controversies never bothered me,” Varma wrote, adding that Jackson’s artistry and aura far outweighed everything else. He went on to explain the reason behind the provocative title of his post, saying he “hated” Michael Jackson for proving he was mortal.

“I hate Michael Jackson for dying. I hate him for proving that even he was human,” Varma wrote emotionally, adding that Jackson “betrayed” the fantasy he had created for millions of fans worldwide.

Ending the tribute on an emotional note, the filmmaker said he would carry the “daze” Jackson gave him in that Vijayawada video parlour “till I die,” while imagining the late singer “moonwalking across galaxies.”