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Its nothing new that the majority of movies coming out of Bollywood are mostly junk. In fact, I may even have said a thing or two about it. But when the indomitable Naseeruddin Shah speaks, people listen. An article a few days ago on the BBC, has him ranting hard about pretty much everything on Bollywood, following Rang De Basanti‘s loss in the BAFTAs (the BAFTA is Britain’s answer to America’s Oscar) Foreign Film category. Says Naseer,
“We just don’t make films of an international standard.”
“I really don’t think we make films that can match those from other parts of the world. And I am not referring to Hollywood – we make copies of Hollywood,” he added.
Comparing Bollywood to other film industries, Mr Shah said: “We can’t match the types of films made in Iran for example, Poland, Japan, Mexico or Brazil, Vietnam or Korea.
“These countries are producing the most incredible movies and we are still plodding on with our boy-meets-girl safe, old formula. That is the reason I think our films aren’t taken seriously”. [link]
It’s rare (and nice) to see such vigorous criticism coming from one of Bollywood’s top actors. And by “top” I don’t mean “A-List” but, literally, one of the finest acting talents that India has to offer. While I wholeheartedly agree with Naseer, I also have to say that things are changing in Bollywood. The traditional “boy-meets-girl” formula still exists and a vast majority of the films use it, but there are small, but significant films that go against the tide and surprise us. For instance, several of the movies that RGV makes are not the usual fare. More recently, Maqbool and Omkara were also excellent. And these small films have been increasing in number over the last few years, with the economy (and exposure) opening up.
Oscar: So close, yet so far…
Now, about Rang De Basanti: First of all, the fact that Rang De Basanti did not win the BAFTA is not surprising to me. It was also India’s selection for the Oscars. Obviously, it didn’t even make it to the shortlist. Why do Indians fail to see what might be globally appealing? Basanti wasn’t a great movie by any standards. While it started off quite well, giving us hope that this might be different from the usual Bollywood fare, it just nosedived after the first half into total disaster. People said Omkara would have been a better choice. I agree. And I know that there are a few other movies out there that would also have been good choices for export.
Secondly, the question is, even if a good movie is found and selected in an intelligent fashion from the mundane crap that Bollywood has to offer, will the filmmakers market it effectively enough so that it’s picked up by the Academy? I mean, they really have to push hard. And historically, they have not been too successful in doing this. Lagaan was an exception, but I heard that Aamir Khan sweat blood making sure the movie got its fair share of attention on this side of the Atlantic. The question is, can others handle it? It’s an uphill battle, I would imagine, and one that is fiercely competitive. India is at a competitive disadvantage, I think, because our movies don’t have much exposure over here and a majority (but not all) Westerners have certain notions about the country which they like to see reflected on screen.
Thirdly, if they are going to take time and effort to market films out of India, I would like to see movies that don’t exploit India’s poverty [Salaam Bombay, Born Into Brothels] and/or ancient (and unjust) traditions [Water]. It’s bad enough that I have to sit through that crap, but then to have Americans come and ask you for months afterwards whether I got married when I was eight, or other such nonsense, is a bit much for me. While India has several problems, we’ll leave Anand Patwardhan to film them. The rest of you filmmakers out there, please stay away from India’s social issues. Unless, of course, you’re willing to deal with them in an interesting way, with good acting and a plot which gives some credit to my intelligence.
Ok. It’s out of my system now…
6 responses so far ↓
1 Jasleen // Feb 27, 2007 at 2:29 pm
Talking about Naseer, League of Extraordinary Gentlemen was on TV a few times last week..
Naseer as Captain Nemo. I guess it was the lure of working with Sean Connery that led him there.
As far as good movies from India go, I would recommend Saaransh with Anupam Kher.
2 The Great Ganesha // Feb 27, 2007 at 2:30 pm
thx. will check it out…
3 Jasleen // Feb 27, 2007 at 3:23 pm
Forgot to add this…
I am not sure if you know this, but Omkara could not go in as an entry for the best foreign film because it was adapted from Shakespeare’s Othello. For the best foreign film category only original scripts are allowed.
4 The Great Ganesha // Feb 27, 2007 at 4:15 pm
jasleen -
that’s not true. kurosawa’s film ran was nominated for and won several oscars in ’86. it was based on shakespeare’s ‘king lear’.
it wasn’t nominated for foreign film, though. but here are the academy rules for foreign films. under ‘eligibility’ it does not say anything about adapted screenplays.
this makes sense to me, since the film is -for practical purposes- a work of art independent of the original work. so long as it is original, of course, in that the filmmakers have tried to add their own touch to it. omkara certainly falls under that category. it was no small task to transfer shakespeare to u.p., i’m sure.
-gg
5 Chapatikid // Feb 28, 2007 at 8:38 pm
Dude. Well said. Although I think it’s a bit crass of Naseer to bite the hand that feeds him. Ultimately, Bollywood is the Dream Machine, and apparently, not just for Indians in India, but for Indians all around the world. You should see how many non-Indian Canadians watch Bollywood movies on Omni Television here over the weekend. Naach-gaana — the tradition of the natak has been part of our culture for centuries, and that’s why music in Indian film is still de rigeur. Where else in the world do people declare a film a hit even before they’ve seen it? Where else in the world does the soundtrack for the movie get released months before the movie itself? We are unique, let’s face it. And the only reason we think other international fare is better than ours is because it’s foreign to us — it’s new, a cultural exploration, a different world opened. That’s what people think of Indian cinema too. And let’s not forget that we have some fabulous new filmmakers who are trying to fill in the grey area between “commercial” cinema and “parallel” (or whatever the new term is for it — I think they now call it “significant cinema” or something like that, which just goes to show what we think of our own work) cinema by making films that don’t bore you to tears with their muddy cinematography and stilted dialogue. Instead, they are able to address “significant issues” and entertain the masses at the same time. Cases in point: Rang De Basanti, Lagaan, and Dil Chahta Hai.
6 The Great Ganesha // Mar 1, 2007 at 11:50 am
hi ck -
wow. nice comment. i can see you feel as strongly about this as i do. and i agree with you: if the formula has been working for all these years, why mess with it? after all, it does represent many good things about our culture. furthermore, there is a vast non-indian foreign audience that also appreciates the films. i agree with all this. i’m just saying that the level of professionalism in bollywood movies is painfully low. i see it most blatantly when it comes to the acting and, to some extent, in the direction as well. i won’t comment on production values, because our des operates on low budgets.
and this is not to say that other countries have better movies overall. plenty of crap comes out of other countries as well. but when anyone talks about international film and good international movies, very few indian directors come to mind. i think what naseer is saying, and what i agree with, is that we need to have films that appeal on a global scale. and this is where we are lacking. part of it is in the marketing and part of it is in the movie choices (as i said above).
there are plenty of good things to say about bollywood as well, including the fact that they get pretty good bang for the buck for what they spend. and i know that there are several excellent “non-mainstream” films out there (i mention some myself above). but, for now, they need a kick in the butt, not a pat on the back. at least from me…
-gg
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