For the love of the movies...

In India, if there are two trades that form the staple diet in terms of people's passion or hobbies, its surely got to be Bollywood and Cricket. Though, there can be a handful who might not be interested in either of these but still a majority will surely have a point of view on both these trades. And you can strike a good conversation with them on either of these topics, as is evident in any 'paan-shop', 'restaurant', 'train compartment' or any public place. We Indians just love to press upon our opinions on both these rather massy topics quite vehemently.

So if we leave aside Cricket as topic for some other day and just talk about Bollywood for now we can still get into lot of interesting contours. I often come across a lot of my elders, be it my parents or uncles who strongly lament about the fact that the standard of movies these days has gone down to shameless lows. They feel that not only a strong wave of vulgarity has taken over the movies that are on offer these days but also there is huge dip in the overall content, in terms of message that movies of the yesteryears use to convey. I kind of agree and disagree on this at the same time. I agree on the vulgarity aspect that has taken the front seat in most of content that is served to us but I disagree on the fact that we no longer have meaningful family oriented cinemas been created these days, how about '3 Idiots', 'Barfi', 'Kahaani', 'Taare Zameen Par' and 'Chak De' to name a few. Will they not stand at par with any of the yesteryear gems?

Interestingly, there is new category of cinema that has established itself in recent years, the so called intelligent, multiplex, internationally acclaimed film category, may be an upgraded version of the erstwhile 'Art Film' category. Movies like 'Dor', 'Mod', 'Slum Dog Millionaire' and 'The Lunch Box' will suitably fall in this category. Not taking anything away from the cinematic brilliance of such movies, I often fail to form  a definitive opinion about such movies. I do like most of these movies for there excellent story telling ways but I can somehow never fathom the basis of the huge critical acclaim they garner internationally. I feel these movies more often than not depict the rural/semi urban aspect of India with an intent to wow the urban/international audiences and thereby pose a strong case for themselves in the global award categories. And if this is not true, then why are these rural/semi urban plot based movies not released in rural/semi urban single screen theatres? Will the people there not connect with these stories better? Or the intent of making these movies is just to win those international awards by showcasing the not so good  and sorry aspect of India?

But a section among us kind of defines there taste by strongly advocating such movies at the expense of potboilers like 'Dabang', 'Singhams' and 'Chennai Express'. There is no point discussing the merits of the latters but to prove oneself intellectually superior by advocating the former, is totally irrational. For the simple reason that if you don't like a particular type of cinema please don't watch it and also please don't like a particular type of cinema just because the so called 'intelligent few' have liked it and unless you too do so you won't graduate to the intelligent category.

I believe the beauty of Indian cinema lies in the diversity its offers. On one hand we have the no brainer masala entertainers like Dabang, then on the other we have the Lunch Boxes as well and then we also have the ZNMDs and Milkhas of the world. Where else will you get such a diversified platter to pick and choose from. I for myself watch all kinds of cinema, though I am most inclined towards the ZNMD, DCH and Milkha category. Not that I can't stand the Dabangs and Singhams of the world or can't understand the delectable Lunch Boxes but if given a choice I would rather opt for the 1st of the 3 categories.

 

But then the real fun lies in striking an interesting movie conversation with effervescent massy film lover or the rather classy internationally acclaimed movies, aficionado. Because neither of these movie lovers are less by any means in there love and passion for Indian Cinema. And this passion howsoever different keeps the movie buzz alive even outside the cinema halls.

Long live BOLLYWOOD and long live it's variety!

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For those who really care - Jinhe Desh ki fikr hai!

The new season of the Satyamev Jayate started with much fanfare this weekend much to the build-up that was created in the last few weeks. And the kind of innovative and rather emotional flavour that was associated with its re-launch ensured in striking the right chord with the masses. No doubt people have been a tad more cautious in not breaking the traffic signals these days just to ensure that they ‘care for the country’, pretty much on the ‘jinhe desh ki fikr hai’ tag lineJ.

One of the key factors that lends a lot of credibility to Satyamev Jayate is Aamir Khan’s association and close involvement in each of these critical issues. He makes the overall effort look so credible and believable, that you tend to envy him for his ever so impeccable and perfect ways. Some may argue that at times certain portions of the show do appear overly dramatic but that doesn’t  take anything away from the overall noble intentions of the show. This show has succeeded in bringing very tough and awkward issues into our drawing rooms that we have so far evaded discussing or contemplating upon, together with our family members. And that surely is the first and the most important step in working towards these serious issues and the new tag line ‘jinhe desh ki fikr hai’ rightly emphasizes on it.

So assuming that ‘those who care for the country’ implies to every citizen of this nation and urges them to be responsible and vocal against anything that is unjust, makes everyone accountable of anything untoward happening around us. It rightly gives a sense of direction on how we can bravely tackle these situations without being thwarted by them. Also,it clearly outlines about the state machineries whom we should rightfully reach out to register our grievances and call for an immediate action against the culprits involved. But is this enough? Not to undermine what Satyamev Jayate is trying to achieve through its manifold initiatives, not to sound too cynical about the ask from every citizen to care for the country. This is certainly not enough.

Not enough, because even if a considerable no. of people start caring for the country by becoming proactive and alert even on the issues that are not impacting them directly, it won’t totally solve the larger problem in our country. And the reason is simple, unless the office bearers, decision/policy makers and government officials start to care for our country, a common man’s care won’t make much of a difference. Imagine a situation, a set of caring, responsible and aware citizens going to a police station to report an anti-social incident but the officer  in charge refuses to cooperate, what good can that new found awareness and care do? It would rather demotivate the common man further to believe that nothing productive can be done in the present day context. So, as much is the need to make the common man aware and equipped with their roles and responsibilities towards our nation, which Satyamev Jayate is rightly doing, there is a larger need for a mass conscience awakening of our bureaucrats and politicians towards their role in making our nation a better place to live, for the generations to come.

Without doubt Aamir Khan and his team deserve lot of credit for what they are trying to achieve through their television show. But only if our office bearers can also join the ‘jinhe desh ki fikr hai’ bandwagon, our nation would be much better place to live far sooner. And to start with they can do their bit by proactively adhering and enforcing the accountability measures like Jan Lokpal Bill and RTI across departments and thereby showcasing their intent and care for the country. Alas, a day will then come when we don’t have to worry for our country!

Satyamev Jayate!

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