Who asked the questions?

January 1993 - my first accident. First accidents have a strange and callous way of rousing one's primal fears. Brought about by a distraced me on the bicycle colliding with a van driven by an innocent driver who was later beaten up for no fault of his, it gave rise to a moment of blinding fear, followed by a few moments of logical fear, a quick check of limbs and the mandatory crying.

Later that week, resting on my bed with a torn ligament in my left knee that, for a brief period, gave me a lot of gifts, I saw an interview on DD. I neither remember the interviewer nor the interviewee, but I remember one sentence very clearly:
Maniratnam is India's answer to speilberg. Or better, Spielberg is hollywood's answer to maniratnam.

Fast-forward to 1996. Sachin's century against Pakistan in Sharjah. Sachin is India's answer to Bradman.

And now, John Abraham - India's answer to Brad Pitt. Who are these people answering to? Who asked the questions?

P.S: This was kuzh's question on seeing John Abraham's photo in Koramangala.