The Rape of the Hindi Film Industry

Hindi Film Industry began in 1913 with Raja Harishchandra; saw it's first talkie in 1931 with Alam Ara; saw colour in 1937 with Kisaan Kanya; saw it's golden age in the 1950s and 60s, gave vent to the angst and anger of the Indian populace in the 1970s, fell into mediocrity in the 1980s, saw a revival in the 1990s and then sold itself into perpetual slavery to the Americanized Non-Reliable India based outshore in the 2000s....... and by the time we reach 2013, the centennary of film-making in India, we will finally find out that the Indian Industry just does not exist; it's become a failed clone-copy of Hollywood .....

The directors of today prefer to make a cut-to-cut, frame-by-frame copy of Hollywood rather than work out something on their own.... They swear by Steven Spielberg and do not recognize Shyam Benegal. Bimal Roy for them is somebody who made some movies, but they are incapable of remembering which movies...... Mehboob Khan for them is too melodramatic, and K Asif a one-film wonder!

The actors of today talk of Dustin Hoffman but have not seen a film starring Dilip Kumar. They have not heard of Motilal and Yakub ... Raj Kapoor for them is an 'indianised' version of Charles Chaplin and for them Naseeruddin Shah is no match to Nicholas Cage! They have heard of even second-rate performers in Hollywood but are not aware of stellar performances by great actors like David and Abhi Bhattacharya.

What can one expect from someone who rates Angelina Jolie and Jennifer Lopez as an actor! Wow - what a laugh! Sir, have you heard of Nutan? What about Meena Kumari? And if recent histroy is all you remember, I guess Sridevi should do the trick? Fans of Merlyn Monroe would be stunned to see that we had Madhubala in the 50s and Madhuri Dixit in the 90s ... but then, to appreciate them, you need to see them .... and who wants to see them?

You ask them of their favourite singers and everyone from the Beatles to Micheal Jackson and Prince and who-knows-who is spoken of but the names that ruled not only hearts but also had exceptional command over sur and taal (something no Westerner can claim to having) are not even spoken off in the same breath ..... Mohammed Rafi and Lata Mangeshkar are not even on their hear-list!

The result in all but evident ..... I managed to see a film called Kites recently, the best example of the malaise that's destroying the character of our Film Industry..... it has everything - a good and handsome actor, a beautiful, brilliant and bountiful actress, awesome locales, brilliant cinematrography ... everything but no 'soul' ... like the mannequin placed in some corner of a shop, it can show off some dresses but in itself it's nothing.....

Like a Biryaani, that has the finest meat, the best of other ingredients, has been cooked well and also served well but has no salt and no edibility.... Kites, like all contemporary cinema of today is beuatiful in appearance but lacking in soul

And that's expected; in an near-incestous industry, where only family connections get you an opportunity and where real talent in raped and murdered every instant, and the bigwigs of the industry themselves are no more than prostitutes, ready and eager to sell themselves to mediocrity and for money to their clientiele in US and UK, what else can be expected.....

The Hindi Film Industry is being raped ... just like Draupadi was violated and again Bhishma, Drona and Karna are silent! That led to Kurukshetra and the eradication of the entire Hastinapur line .... what will this lead to, only Lord Krishna knows:

I end with a beautiful couplet from Iqbal:

Watan Ki Fiqrr Kar Naadaan, Qayamat Aane Waali Hai,
Teri Barbaadiyon Ke Mashwarre Hain Aasmaanon Mein .....
Na Samjhoge To Mitt Jaoge Ae Hindostaanwaalon,
Tumhaari Daastaan Tak Na Hogi Daataanon Mein .....

The Errant Student, The Ideal Teacher - My Thoughts on Jaagriti (1955)

Memories, however sweet always tend to hurt you - if they remind us of good times, the heart yearns for a return to those days; if they remind us of bad times, it reminds us of what we have gone through - either way, nothing but pain can be earned from memories.

One such memory from my past is related to my school days! It's true that I completed my matriculation way back - a long way back! It's been so long sometimes, it appears to have happened in my last life ..... Still there is so much from those days of carefree abandon, those days of innocence that I still remember: the taste of Simba pop corn still seems to be esconced on my tongue, the mind still remembers the aroma of the freshly-painted desks! 13 June or 14 June still mark an important day in my life, though the trigger belongs to an era forgotten.

Do not misunderstand me ... It's not as if I was the apple of my teacher's eyes, the cynosure of the school, the 'scholar' that the system prides in; on the contrary I was different, plainly different from all in the school and hence was never accepted by the school nor appreciated by my peers ever; I have all the many reasons to be estranged from my school but still my heart beats for those days that have left me long back ...... and suddenly it has all come to the fore.... Actually, Facebook is the culprit here as I chanced to meet my ex-collegues after what seems to be an era on the site ....... and suddenly it all came flooding back!

Everything that had been hidden in the back of my mind has all come back to the fore and somewhere deep in my heart it's hurting. I am no longer the guy I was then; everything about me has changed! The ideals of communism that I espoused then have given way to heady capitalism, the dreams of a life devoted to research and science has long been relegated to the background of finances and investments; innocence has given way to culpability; but still memories of that time, that age remain ... one can never escape them.

In such times, there is one film I recommend to all  - it's one of the first mainstream Hindi Films on Children and the relationship between a teacher and a student .... a genre very rarely seen in the mainstream and a genre which can boast of very few good movies ..... Jaagriti - if you ever get a chance to watch this movie do not fail to do so .... this is a film that will make you cry and laugh with the protagonists; a film that will remind you of your school days.....

Jaagriti was released in 1955 and had none of the top actors of the day; there was no feminine love interest to boast of, the musical score was by a genius who was just making his name in singing, there were only 4 songs and that was considered harakiri by the standards of the time ... and to top it all, it was about juvenile delinquency, it was about children and it was about the relationship between a teacher and a student, against the backdrop of a newly independent nation ...... no one could ever prophesize that not only would this film be a hit but that it would also be a classic to be loved and remembered when the more popular formulaic films had been forgotten ....

Abhi Bhattacharya as Shekhar really brings the ideal of a teacher to life...... whether it's while holding back when the guys let off all their steam, softly explaining his point, subtly puting his point across and also ocassionally wielding the cane with aplomb, the guy comes out all trump. Abhi is such a natural that I remember trying to compare in my school if any of my teachers matched upto him ..... His confidence makes him let go of the centre-stage without feeling the heat and still maintain his presence. No doubt he got the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance. Among others, Pronoti Ghosh plays the role of the mother ably.

Raj Kumar Gupta (not to be confused with Jaani Kumar) is the man in the middle. A child artiste, who not only ably carries the film on his shoulders but also carries off the confused and conflicting emotions of Ajay without any major stress or pressure. At different stages of the film, he is the rebel without a cause, a angry child, a man of his own design, a friend carrying the guilt of a friend's death and in every stage he not only proves equal to the task but often puts everyone else in the shade.

Rattan Kumar ia also brilliant as the soft-spoken Shakti who is the perfect couterfoil to his mercurial friend Ajay. In the 1950's there was only one child-artiste who was more popular than Rattan and that was the iconic Daisy Irani .... but unline Daisy, Rattan always managed to play lead roles in a time when children film were itself an aberration - Boot Polish and Jagriti being two of his biggest hits. In this movie, Rattan is the epitome of the perfect student and his performance is a revelation.

Satyen Bose, the man behind such classics as Gunga-Jamuna and Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi is also the director who pioneered child films in India. That he is a great director, there is no doubt.... if you have to look, don't look beyond the swing scene - it's the most emotional scene in the film and only a director of finesse can bring out so complex an emotion from a bunch of kids. A very brilliant director!

Music is awesome to say the least ..... Hemant Kumar is normally known as a genius singer but he was an equally brilliant musician. It takes a lot of talent and capability to score 4 brilliant songs and personally resist the temptation of singing even one of them. Each and every song is a revelation - Asha Bhonsle's eulogy to Mahatma Gandhi, "Sabarmati Ke Sant" still moves us and brings tears to our eyes ..... Her second song, "Chalo Chalein Maa" sung in two moods can be compared to some of the best mother-child songs ever composed in the Hindi Film Industry.

Kavi Pradeep, the great patriotic songwriter who has given some of the most patriotic gems ever composed is at his personal best in "Aao Bachon, Tumhein Dikhayen" ... He is so well-adapted to the mood and tone of the song that the other masterpiece of the film is often forgotten by the conniseurs .... "Hum Laayen Hain Tufaan Se Kashti Nikaal Ke" by Mohammed Rafi is a masterpiece that needs to be listened to understand the meaning of the word masterpiece......

If Kavi Pradeep's song is the epitome of a teacher's lessons being taught in a musical mode, Mohammed Rafi's call is the best song that a teacher would like to sing on a farewell .....

Hum Laaye Hain Toofan Se Kashti Nikaal Ke;
Is Desh Ko Rakhna Mere Bacchon Sambhal Ke

From Khan With Love - My Thoughts on My Name is Khan (2010)

My Name Is Khan is indeed a movie that speaks from far beyond it's scope, a movie that attempts maybe more than it can chew; that tries to deliver a message which may be beyond it’s limited scope but let’s face it, there is indeed, without doubt a sense of history that pervades each and every frame of the film, the earnestness of the makers shines through each and every angle, every scene oozes of sentimentality and humane concerns, in short it is a perfect example of the ‘desi’ effect ......... now on the flip side, the story is not told subtly, more often it's loud and crass, the humour jars at times, the director oversimplifies the context of the movie to an extent that at times you feel spoon fed but I would still go ahead with the movies for it dares to take a stand and for that one moment of conscientitious bravado, I say it makes history in it's self. Even if all the controversy that was generated had not been there, even if the film would have been shorn of all the paraphernalia that occurred, the film would have still stood on it's own as a story that needs to be told ...... In a world that has lost patience with a contrarian opinion, it dares to make a statement that goes against the grain of modern thought today and for this, my friend, I say, the film has it's own space in History.

The history of the 20th century is a history of change and of conflict fought through proxy; …. the accelerated growth of science and technology, the fall of the imperial models that ruled the world for the last 3 centuries through two devastating world wars, the insidious blood-stained battle of supremacy between democracy and communism, the sex revolution and the resultant chaos due to these factors put severe strains on questions of religion and morality, as was laid down in the bygone era and was consequently destined to put the two world orders, one emergent, the other renegade, in direct conflict with each other ....

The Clash of Civilizations was just waiting to happen and in 1979 it did happen ..... Soviet Russia's ill-fated invasion of Afghanistan in 1979 and America's short-sighted support of the Islamic feudal order to break down Russia was bound to backfire - you do not bring home a wolf to take care of the cobra – it was a new lease to the shrinking power of the past and the obstructionist and conservative Mullahs, who had been pushed to the fringe by the march of humanity towards democracy and liberalism grabbed the straw offered by the Americans to resuscitate their career, to provide it with a life of it's own, and they added to Afghanistan, emotive issues such as Palestine, Kashmir, South Philippines etc – fuel to an engine that fed on death .... Little did the States realize that it was creating a Frankenstein monster and that one day the monster would return to feed on it as monsters inevitably do ..... and that happened on 9/11 .........

9/11 changed the way we look at the world and suddenly being Muslim became automatically a crime, nay a 'sin' in the eyes of the world. Adages such as 'All Muslims are not terrorists but all terrorists are Muslims' became increasingly used universally as if the IRA, the LTTE, the NSCN, the ULFA, the LRA and many other such organizations were overnight transformed to Islamic, in nature, temperament and retrospect .... Liberals spoke against this demonisation of Islam but as Adolph Hitler once remarked, 'the greater the lie, the louder it is spoken and the more it's repeated, the more people will accept it as truth' . it invariably, became accepted as truth ....... Not one voice of reason spoke against it, victimisation of Muslims became common; no one, not even Hollywood dared to speak against it and therein lies the reason My Name is Khan needs to be lauded for they dared to speak what none dared to speak ...

My Name Is Khan can be aptly defined by one statement that the protagonist makes early in the film and then repeats throughout the film, "My Name is Khan and I am Not a Terrorist." This is the message of the movie and to be frank the message goes out loud and clear, sometimes a little too loud and clear for comfort but all the same, it achieves it's target!

Shahrukh for a change decides to let go of the megastar that we see too frequently and brings out the actor, something we are pleased to see, he has been doing more frequently in the recent past ; the mannerisms of Raj and Rahul are still there but they subside in deference to Rizwan Khan, the role he plays and he succeeds in making them a part of the elaborate characterization of the part. The charishma and charm of the actor is a given and is bought to great effect in both the early scenes as well as in the dramatic second half …. Renditions of people with special medical conditions is sadly not given the respect it deserves but SRK gives us a refreshing performance, one that does not make a caricature of either the actor or Asperger’s syndrome, which the character is supposed to be suffering from.

One of the best scenes in the movie happens when SRK, while trying to meet the President of the US, gatecrashes into a Charity dinner organized by a Christian trust and though ready to pay the necessary amount is told that only Christians can be a part of the fund-raising, he donates the money and withdraws, tellingly making a comment on the haplessness of religion when he says ,”For those in Africa who are not Christians…..”

Kajol is as vivacious as vivacity can be and serious as seriousness can be. Many critics have derided her performance in the first half as flighty while showering praise on her for her performance in the second half. I wish to disagree. Kajol as Mandira in the first half is a perfect and at times a logical counterfoil to the enigmatic Khan. She is equally restrained and powerful in her controlled performance as the grieving mother in the second half, however I thought that her outburst in the second half was hamming of a high degree. (SRK meanwhile was very strong in that scene). But the scene that’s bound to remain in the mind of a discerning critic is the one in which she coolly tells Reese ,”She will …. She is a mom.”

However, The most beautiful and powerful performances in the film comes from two child actors, Yuvaan Makaar and Kenton Duty. Both of them are young, impressionable and brilliant and show to considerable effect, the gulf that formed between Muslim / Non-Muslim relationships in the wake of 9 / 11. The cemetery scene where Resse (played by Kenton) walks away from Sam (played by Yuvaan) with cold hatred showing on the face of the former and bewilderment showing on the face of the later is one of the most powerful and evocative scenes in the movie.

The film is also helped to a great extent by a brilliant set of character-actors who perform ably and well; special mention must be made of Zarina Wahab who performs the role of a sensible but hapless mother torn between a challenged and a normal son effectively; Pravin Dabbas as a conscientitious Sikh (Bobby) is very effective.

I liked the guy who played Raj (Arjun Mathur); not an actor with a lot of records under his belt but the fire in his belly can be felt …….. he has 2 of the best dialogues in the movie and delivers it to the hilt, who can forget dialogues like these …. To Bobby:

“Ek Sardar Ko Musalmaan Samjha Gaya To Aapne Apni Zindagi Badal Di; Yahaan Ek Musalman Ko Insaan Nahin Samjha Jaa Raha Hai Aur Aap Waqt Nahin Nikaal Saktey”

And to Komal (well performed by Sugandha Garg)

“Agar Ye Khan Naa Hokar Khanna Hota To Tumhein Problem Nahin Tha?”

Jimmy Shergill, the ever-forgotten actor who appears to be in his elements, only in a Vidhu Vinod Chopra film, is given an opportunity to portray an estranged brother and does it with élan. He portrays the anguish of a neglected brother to the hilt. Sonya Jehan is very strong in her portrayal and has some of the best scenes in the film. Her monologue towards the end is an excellent piece of writing although I am not sure I agree with ‘hijab’ being a part of anyone’s ‘wajood’ ……. Equally impressive is the trauma that she depicts on being de-hijab-ed, the tears seem to rise from someplace deep and even Jimmy is in his elements while trying to convince her to give up hijaab

Katie A Keene and Dominic Renda are also good. Sheetal Menon looks good and is adequate in the acting department. Vinay Pathak shows a strong sense of humour and a flair for comedy. Benny Nieves as a detective and Christopher B Duncan as Barak Obama are adequate. Jennifer Echols as Mama Jenny is an actor-par-excellence and I wish someone could tell me who was that actor who did Funny Hair Joel as that guy was really good. I am sure I have missed out on a lot of actors but that does not take away from their brilliance, it only points out my incompetence rather than take away from their performance.

Music in the movie is different from the normal fare – easy on the ears and sweet too ….. all the songs have a Sufi touch and hence have a somewhat transcendent feel …. Sajda by Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, Shankar Mahadevan and Richa Sharma is exceptional …… Noor-E-Khuda is also beautifully rendered but I liked Tere Naina by Shafqat Amanat Khan the best. I think Shankar Ehsaan Loy are among the best we have in the industry today

And that brings us to the Director – Karan Johar is nowhere among my favourite directors but his last 2 films, Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna and My Name is Khan have made me sit up and take notice of the man ….. I am still not enamoured of him but I guess I will grudgingly accept that he has talent. The one scene which convinced me of his talent is when SRK throws pebbles at a terrorist recruiter (well played by Arif Zakaria) in a mosque in an analogous scene that reminds one of the Islamic tradition of Stoning the Devil. Then there is the opening sequence shot in the airport which delivers the message in a very impressive style. Karan has been uncompromising and almost gallantly lachrymal in shooting the film, making the emotions not subtle but loud but still unlike many other directors, the film does not become vulgar or cheap.

And that brings me to the finale …… My Name is Khan is what is prescribed by the doctor ..... it's important that we all accept that there is no religion to terrorism and that being A Muslim is neither a Crime nor a Sin ...... and I conclude by saying ......

“My Name is Iquebal And I am Not a Terrorist"

Why should Amitabh be awarded?

They announced the Filmfare Awards tonight and what a shame! Amitabh Bachchan was adjusted 'Best Actor' for his performance in 'Paa' ....... Surely, the jury could have found a better rationale than to award Amitabh for a role that was nothing beyond the pale of imagination ......... Versatile actors like Naseer, Kamal  and Sanjeev have done greater justice to similar roles and have never even been appreciated, so it's indeed a matter of great surprise when Amitabh gets renown where even actors better than him have not been commended

In a year, that boasted of brilliant performances as diverse as Irrfan in Billoo, Shaahid Kapoor in Kaminey, Saif Ali Khan in Love Aaj Kal, Abhishek Bachchan in Dilli 6 and of course Aamir Khan in 3 Idiots, what could have been so great about a performance that did not even speak to the heart that it had to be awarded a Filmfare? Since when has Filmfare become a personal fiefdom of the Bachchan family? Why should an award a year be the norm for a family which is grossly overrated?

Sad to say this but Filmfare has lost it - from a class apart to a chatel apart, it has been a story that was better never written!

Satyamev Jayate - My Thoughts on Rann (2010)

I remember the day when I first saw the visuals of Rann - everything about the film seemed clichéd, a typical everything-ends-well kind of story that's the staple of our industry; going by my experience I should have dumped it aside and not given it a second thought, but something, somewhere, cut me close to my heart - maybe it was the earnest innocence that exuded from Amitabh, maybe it was the pained anguish that exuded from Ritesh - but there was a quality about it that marked it differently .....

The day the movie got released, I saw the wave of outrage that marked the movie review on various news channels, for a moment I felt vindicated by my choice for a movie but when I started looking at the reviews from my friends, for a moment, I felt insecure - was I betting my money on a lame horse? was I putting my money on a lost cause, a caricature? Today, after watching the movie, I can say, no! The movie may not be a classic but it indeed is much better than those so-called intelligent movies like Paa .....

So what was it about the movie that I liked so much? There have been better movies on the rape of Truth by the Media, a notable case could be the classic 'Main Aazad Hoon', which was much ahead of it's time .... but the said movie spoke about Print Media .... Television News Channels were largely left untouched except for a human interest story in 'Mumbai Meri Jaan' or as a sideline in 'Chak De India' or other similar movies ..... What was different was the fact that this movie was about the media, for the media, by the media and of the media ...... And what really was impressive was the feel of lost innocence and fall of values that made it all so natural.

The silent connivance of Jai (Sudeep), the fall from grace of Vijay (Amitabh) and the incessant fight for lost innocence by Purab (Ritesh) is what makes the film different .... Yes, the film is slow but then what else do you expect from a movie that deals with an issue as sensitive and difficult as the use and abuse of Media ... If this film would have been made by a foreigner, we would have sung paeans to the maker and termed it a classic, but since it's the effort of an Indian, our colonial mindset looks at it differently ......

Ram Gopal Verma, after a long time, manages to make a movie, that is worthy of his name .... though the movie may still not be a patch on Satya, Shiva or Company, still it's much better than all the Phoonk and what-not he has been dishing out over the last many years..... Maybe it's still not too much for us to expect RGV to come back to what his forte was and to make those movies that gained him the respect and love and trust of the discerning audience ... it's time, he learnt that even though film-making is a matter of commerce, it's not a factory like any other .... it's a different industry and it runs on a different norm!

Amitabh Bachchan manages to pack a punch in his performance; the director has ensured the authenticity and continuity of the film, by not insisting on putting him in every frame in the movie but only wherever strictly required! Fans of the mega star may find it a tad frustrating and may be disappointed but then no actor is bigger than the film; the graph of the actor does not miss a beat even once .... And Amitabh being Amitabh brings brilliance to the film, without even trying to do so; right from the introduction scene to the final monologue, he is a man in control and he shows that effortlessly

Ritesh Deshmukh as a man whose innocence has been lost; as a man who genuinely believes in the freedom and impartiality of the press; as a journalist wedded to the ethics of a profession that became extinct with the advent of TRP ratings, is so true to the role that there are times during the movie when he steals the thunder from under the noses of senior performers. 

Sudeep, as Jai, is the man to watch out for. His performance is well-etched and well-graphed like a symphony in progress - each and every aspect of his performance like a wave that surpasses the previous and builds momentum for the next to follow ...... a wonderful actor, Sudeep is here for the long haul and he proves his mettle in this movie - Watch out for this actor; he will make an impact

Paresh Rawal - what does one say about this actor? It would suffice to say, that so much is expected from him, that what would be adequate or even masterly in case of other actors is considered inadequate in his case and looking at him from the glass of his capability and talent, he does not live up to expectations - his performance is stagnant, after a high that's reached early on.

Mohnish Behl, Rajat Kapoor and Gul Panag are adequate; actually Mohnish does show some sparks in his monnologue but both Suchitra Krishnamoorthy and Rajpal Yadav disappoint. Suchitra had a brilliant chance to redeem herself as a double-dealing COO of a news network that keeps contacts with the opposition but it's a classic case of 'What could have been ...' Neetu Chandra does not have a lot to do in the film, it would have been great if a little aspect of hers could also have been documented; it would make the end slightly more plausible but still she is adequate

Ram Gopal Verma, as stated earlier, would do well to concentrate on making movies with subjects that make sense like Rann if he wants to get back the respect and honour he had earlier on. His combination with Amitabh is really worth it's weight in gold if one forgets nonsense like Aag and this is what he should avoid like the plague. 

The rape of Truth, the replacement of News by Sensationalism and the understandings that exist between the fourth state and the other pillars of Society is a dangerous precedent and can lead the nation to disaster - It's high time, we understand that a free Press is not only desirable but also essential for our existence ... It would not take long to learn that most revolutions on Earth were the result of a Despot or Tyrant trying to throttle the Press from speaking the Truth ... it would be a matter of great shame and disservice to those great leaders from the past, if today, the freedom of the press, for whom they sacrificed their all is disrobed by it's own people in the assembly of the rich and the powerful.

One last word about the media - someone today on the media, while rubbishing the movie said that the Media always works keeping certain norms in mind.... Could that person please explain, where were those norms in the 26 / 11 attacks ...... We are waiting, please do reply!