|
|
 |
SELECT
ONE |
|
 |
|
|
| |
|
| + INDIAN CINEMA |
Art of the matter
In addition to commercial cinema, there’s a genre that film critics call "New Indian Cinema" or "the Indian New Wave" that’s buzzing with activity. Most people simply call films in this genre "art films". Though most of these movies are critically acclaimed, it hardly ever translates to large-scale commercial success.
The art directors of this genre owe more to foreign influences, such as Italian neorealism or the French New Wave. The best known New Cinema directors include Satyajit Ray, Ritwik Ghatak, Bimal Roy, Adoor Gopalakrishnan, G. Aravindan, T. V. Chandran, Shaji N Karun, M. T. Vasudevan Nair,
Girish Kasaravalli. But others like K. Balachander, Bharathiraja, Balu Mahendra, Santhana Bharathi, Cheran, Mani Ratnam, Bapu and Ramana, have managed to achieve box-office hits even while balancing art, parralel and popular elements. Nayagan, Mouna Raagam, Kannathil Muthamittal, Sindhu Bhairavi, Gunaa and Autograph are a must see for movie buffs.
1970s onwards Hindi cinema produced a wave of 'art films', spearheaded by directors such as Shyam Benegal, Govind Nihalani, Mani Kaul, Kumar Shahani, M.S. Sathyu.
Westside story
One of the biggest contributors to Bollywood’s increasing popularity abroad have been the expats who yearn for home away from home. Most of the contemporary film makers have tapped the angst over migration and dislocation. The same angst has led several films by Non-Resident Indian directors to return to India to explore their cultural identity…sans the saucy wet-sari musical sequences. As far as influences go, it’s a two-way street. While on one hand, Western audiences are becoming more interested in India, as proven by the success of Lagaan and Bride and Prejudice. As Western audiences for Indian cinema grow, Western producers are funding Indian filmmakers like Gurinder Chadha (Bride and Prejudice), Mira Nair (Monsoon Wedding) and Deepa Mehta (Fire). Chadha, Nair and Mehta are of Indian origin and have made their names in Western independent films. But others like Manoj Night Shyamalan and Jay Chandrasekhar have succeeded in the Western film industry without leaning on any Bollywood influence. On the other hand, Indian cinema too is influencing the West, especially the genre of English and American musicals---for obvious reasons. While Ozzie director Baz Luhrmann’s Moulin Rouge (2001) incorporates a Bollywood-style dance sequence, Hollywood flick The Guru features Indian-style song-and-dance sequences. Music director A. R. Rahman was recruited for Andrew Lloyd Webber's Bombay Dreams and a musical version of Hum Aapke Hain Koun played in London's West End.
And here’s some trivia. Mother India, Salaam Bombay and Lagaan are the only movies to have been nominated for Best Foreign Film in the Oscars.
Queens & Kings of Bollywood
They are the leading lights of mainstream Hindi films. They are the stars. And there are quite a few of them who are shining bright. Amitabh Bacchhan and his son Abhishek, Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan, Salman Khan, Aishwarya Rai, Rani Mukherjee and Preity Zinta---they are ruling the roost at present. Not only do they add oodles of glam quotient to the screen, but most of them also determine the fate of film. For the Indian viewing public, stars have a blind and loyal following.
Amitabh Bacchhan is a Bollywood icon. From an angry young man to the grand old man of Indian films, Bachchan has done it all. He, together with his son Abhishek, are an unbeatable duo. Others like Shah Rukh Khan have created their own niche in the filmdom—it’s not for nothing that he’s known as King Khan. Aamir Khan is known to be one of the most choosy actors in the industry—a trait that ensures quality over quantity and which got his movie Lagaan an Oscar nomination. Salman Khan is known as the industry’s bad boy—an image that he has cultivated with elan. The actor has the distinction of being one of the most bankable stars in Bollywood. He has a track record few can boast of—he hardly ever delivers a movie that isn’t a ‘hit’.
Now for the divas. Beauty queen-turned actor Aishwarya Rai has managed to make a tremendously successful transition from the ramp to the red carpet. The light-eyed beauty is also making waves internationally with her Bride and Prejudice. She also reportedly turned down the role of Will Smith’s love interest in Hitch. Rani Mukherjee is the Indian audiences favourite girl next door. A tremendously versatile actor, Mukherjee essays her roles with remarkable ease. Preity Zinta’s bubbly personality and pout has won moviegoers’ hearts in the country.
The Credits
Well, Bollywood has reason to break into a celebratory dance at the end of it all. It’s reported that Bollywood movies were more popular than locally made British films in the UK…not so surprising when one takes into account that British Asians comprise about 4 per cent of the UK population. And it’s not just the UK, Bollywood is proving to be a 'hit' in other countries as well. Take the US, for example, where the South Asian community comprises one of the three fastest growing Asian populations. CNN-IBN, an Indian subsidiary of CNN, reported that four Bollywood films (Rang De Basanti, Fanaa, Krrish and Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna) have crossed the $2m mark at the American box office this year. Now, that’s what we call screen presence! Happy viewing. |
|
>> MORE ON DISCOVER INDIA
|
| |
|
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
