|
 Elsewhere in the world and particularly in the United States, movies are largely a source of entertainment. Sometimes they are used for propaganda like during WWII. But even those based on tales from the Bible, such as Samson and Delilah, Quo Vadis, David and Bathsheba, Robe, Last Passion of Christ, etc. cater more to the senses than the soul.
By contrast, in India, films as well as actors and actresses have often cast their influence on the society. In the beginning, Indian cinema relied upon classical and contemporary Indian literature for its themes. While the former such as Ram Rajya, Bharat Milap, Shakuntala, Luv Kusha, Bilwa Mangal, Raja Harishchandra etc., injected an element of spirituality, contemporary literature introduced realism portraying socio-economic issues. Filmmakers who used cinema not only for entertainment but also to project prevalent issues or to open new issues for the public, drew heavily upon such literature.
For example, V. Shantaram's 1925 silent film classic Sawkari Pash (Indian Shylock) was about a poor peasant who "loses his land to a greedy moneylender and is forced to migrate to the city to become a mill worker." Duniya Na Mane, also by Shantaram in 1937 critiqued the treatment of women in Indian society. Achhut Kannya (1936) and Sujata (1959) explored issues of caste and culture in the Hindu society. Chetan Anand's Neecha Nagar (1946) of the same genre won the Grand Prize at the first Cannes Film Festival.
Mahboob Khan's films portrayed the helpless poor pitted against the oppressive rich in Roti (1942), the commoner against the prince in Aan (1952) and the poor peasant woman against the slimy zamindar in Aurat (1940) and Mother India (1957).
Guru Dutt's films Pyaasa (1957) and Kaagaz Ke Phool (1959) and Raj Kapoor's Awaara (1951) and Shree 420 (1955) expressed social themes mainly dealing with working-class urban life; Awaara presented the city as both a nightmare and a dream. Pyaasa critiqued the unreality of city life. Bimal Roy's Do bigha zamin (1953), on a similar theme, won the International Prize at 1954 Cannes Film Festival
History: Raja Harishchandra was the first indigenously made silent film in 1913. Alam Ara was the first talking film released in 1931. In the beginning female roles were played by men as in Harishchandra. There were no intimate love scenes. And, before playback singing came into vogue, players such as K.L. Saigal, Kanan Devi, Khursheed, Noor Jahan, sang the songs, themselves.
By 1935 studios had been established in Calcutta, Bombay and Madras (Chennai). Song and dance was introduced in the latter half of the 1930s with films such as Indra Sabha and Devi Devyani. Other popular musicals were Tansen and Baiju Bawra based on the lives of two legendary musicians of India.
Masala film: This is slang for commercial films with songs, dance, romance, action and farce. Because cinema offered mass entertainment at an affordable price; -one anna (four paisa) for the lowest class, in Bombay, it pulled heavy crowds who liked the contents of masala films.
Parallel Cinema or art cinema, as an alternative to the mainstream commercial cinema, is a specific movement in Indian cinema, distinguished by its serious content, realism and naturalism, with a keen eye on the social-political climate of the times.
This movement started in the 1950s when intellectual filmmakers, fed up by musical films, created a genre to depict reality from an artful perspective. Most famous among the films of this genre were Satyajit Ray's Pather Panchali (1955), Aparajito (1956) and The World of Apu (1959), which formed The Apu Trilogy. The three films won major prizes at the Cannes, Berlin and Venice Film Festivals, and are today frequently listed among the greatest films of all time.
Today India is the world's largest producer of films. In 2009, it produced a total of 2,961 films, including 1288 feature films. Besides, Hindi films which top the list, followed by Telegu and Tamil, films are also being made in Assamese, Bhojpuri, Bengali, Gujrati, Marathi, Oriya, et al. The entry of Miss World Aishawarya Rai and Miss Universe, Sushmita Sen has added to the growth of the industry. But the success of Indian films is more due to the themes that find an echo with the middle class.
Many Indian film actors have been also associated with politics. Tamil cinema, for example, has been a force in the local politics of the Tamil Nadu state. Some of those who have held political offices such as M.G. Ramchandran, Karunanidhi, were associated with the industry, while Janaki Ramachandran, the first woman CM of Tamilnadu and the present AIADMK chief and Chief Minister, Jayalalithaa were, both, film actresses.
Sunil Dutt was cabinet minister. His son Sanjay is also a famed political figure. Amitabh Bachchan won the Lok Sabha elections in 1984. His wife Jaya Bachchan, is a member of the Rajya Sabha. Shabana Azmi is an MP and a famous social worker.
Pakistani cinema: By contrast Pakistani film industry has remained jinxed from the beginning, as a victim of natural causes and the government's unkindness. Therefore, though it produced some of the most notable filmmakers, actors, writers and directors, but nothing could save the industry from decline.
Even at the best of times, like when Indian films were banned after 1965 war, instead of touching on crying social issues, Pakistan filmmakers produced mostly commercial films with a lot of masala, or horror films like Zinda laash (1967) and Zibahkhana (2007). The former became the first X-rated Pakistani horror film and the latter was acclaimed worldwide as the ‘first extreme-horror gore flick.'
The two films Shaheed (1962) and Zarqa (1969) on the Palestine issue, were respectable exceptions.
Teri Yaad (1948) was the first Pakistani film after the brain drain of Partition. Color films were first produced in the 1960s. Armaan (1966) introduced pop music to South Asia. Aina (1977) was the most popular film in the country's history to date, having stayed in cinemas for over 400 weeks at the box office.
Ziaul Haq's censorship policies, directed against displays of affection, rather than violence, led to the production of violence-ridden Punjabi films, such as Maula Jatt (1979) and the introduction of what came to be known as ‘gandasa culture.'
The first issue-centered film after many years was Khuda Ke Liye (2007). However, viewer interest declined to the extent that even Shaqani (1987), Pakistan's first science film that received an award at the Moscow Film Festival was shelved in its own country.
Even the success of Choorian (1998) and Yeh Dil Aap Ka Huwa (2002) that grossed between Rs 180 and 200 million, respectively, could not stem the decline. Revival would be a very challenging task in the present situation.
Bangladesh cinema: Among the first films produced in Bangladesh was Titash Ekti Nadir Naam (1973) by renowned Indian director Ritwik Ghatak. But viewership of Bangladeshi films has dropped both due to increased competition from Indian films and low quality films produced by the local industry, full of sex, violence, or melodrama.
Bangladesh, like Pakistan, suffers from lack of the right kind of filmmakers. The only way out for them would be for some dedicated people to rise to the occasion and make films that resonate in hearts of the multitude. 
The writer is former editor, SouthAsia. He is a seasoned writer and has been covering the political and social issues in SouthAsia for more than three decades.
S. G. Jilanee is a senior political analyst and the former editor of Southasia Magazine.
|
Show/hide comments
Show/hide comment form
