Films and Social Change


Written by M.S. Anand • Cover Stories • November 2010

3-1 The topic may not be a can of worms, but it isn't a simple one either. Films in the subcontinent, let's face it, have had a profound effect on their viewers in more ways than one. Primarily meant to entertain, the movie business (from the day the first Indian talkie Alam Ara was shown on silver screen on March 14, 1931) was not thought of as a tool for bringing about social or political change in society. However, wittingly or unwittingly there were movies made in the past, and have been of late, that highlighted subjects which weren't just about mushy, gooey teenage love affairs (not that it isn't an important issue) but touched upon issues that hinted or pointed at some glaring shortcoming(s) in society.

There are quite a few films and biopic, not in abundance though, that can be mentioned here. In the teething period of the film industry in India, the song and dance sequences were definitely there, but films used to have storylines that couldn't be dubbed as cotton- candy. But, for the most part, they were entertainers.

When filmmakers like Satyajit Ray, Raj Kapoor and Mehboob Khan entered the business (I'm using the word business deliberately) you could tell they were not there just to make a quick buck. They wanted to scratch beneath the glossy world of showbiz to find what else could be had from it. Jaagte Raho, produced by Raj Kapoor and directed by Amit and Sombhu Mitra in 1956, was about a village boy who reaches a big town only to get ensnared in the mendacious city life. A trial also ensues. It's a sensitive film that had a definite purpose behind its making, and the fact that Raj Kapoor produced hints at the preference that the super star had to meaningful cinema.

Mehbook Khan's Mother India (released in 1957 and one of the five nominees for best foreign language film at the Oscars) was another peach of a movie that focused on the suffering and penury-stricken state of a village woman who undergoes many an ordeal in her life but remains resolute in the wake of adversity. The story in its spirit was not a commercial venture but proved to be a commercially successful project as well.

Perhaps no other Indian filmmaker is known more for his socially and politically aware films than the Bengali genius Satyajit Ray. The very fact that his Pathar Panchali was chosen for the Cannes Film Festival in the early ‘50s (which prompted Nargis, ironically the star of Mother India, to suggest that he sells India's poverty abroad) was testimony to his remarkable filmmaking talent. What Ray was showing was not the grimy, dirty and destitute-hit side of India, but something that had perturbed him as a human being. His Appu trilogy, along with Charulata and Shatranj Ke Khiladi, are for sure pictures that made the viewers think, if not act.

Garm Hava and Qissa Kursi Ka are two other ventures that were hard hitting as far as their subject matter goes (the latter on the topic of family planning was even banned by Indira Gandhi, but subsequently Indian courts allowed its screening). The list is a long one and can be traced back to the ‘30s. But the discussion can't be deemed complete if the art house movement, or the parallel cinema movement, of the late ‘70s and early ‘80s goes without an honorable mention. With directors like Shyam Benegal and Govind Nehlani and actors like Naseeruddin Shah, Om Puri, Shabana Azmi and Smita Patel working their hearts out to spread a variety of social messages across India through their meaningful films (sometimes based on classical literature), the movement was a force to be reckoned with. Though it subsided with the passage of time, its influence to date can be detected in ventures like Firaq, made in 2008 by Nandita Das, the renowned actress. Some people believe that the parallel cinema phenomenon helped India's affluent populace get acquainted with the lesser-off people in a better way. Debatable, again! 3-3

In Pakistan there wasn't a particular and collective conscious effort to stir up the conscience of the people through movies, but Pakistani directors over the years have made films that touched upon problems that are related to our society. A relatively less popular film Aag Ka Nasha directed by Sudhir tackles the issue of a father unknowingly falling for his daughter. Then there was a film titled Jago Hua Savera, released in 1959, which earned international acclaim, though wasn't exactly a hit in Pakistan. The film was written by none other than Faiz Ahmed Faiz and the story revolved around the lives of the fishermen of East Pakistan (now Bangladesh). One doesn't know how much influence the film had on Pakistani society but it for sure encouraged Urdu poets to work for/on films willingly. The ‘60s and ‘70s also saw smattering of flicks that were not at all meaningless. And then the ‘80s happened and it all went downhill in the Zia era.

Today Pakistani filmmakers and music video directors have rekindled hopes of cinema lovers that they might achieve something concrete in the near future. Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy's soul-searching documentaries (some of which she directed and on some she worked as a reporter), Mahreen Jabbar's sensitive TV plays (not to mention her critically acclaimed film Ramchand Pakistani) and Shoaib Mansoor's provocative Khuda Ke Liyey have, in a manner of speaking, rejuvenated the film scene in Pakistan. Whether to term it a revival or resumption of cinema in Pakistan is yet to be decided.

The new filmmakers have been creating ripples, not waves, in the rather placid waters of moviemaking in the country. Khuda Ke Liyey was discussed and fiercely debated for its content. Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy's intrepid reportages in the northern areas of Pakistan have painted a picture of the region that's brutally honest. And Mahreen Jabbar's stories depict the need for having a balanced look at society. How far these filmmakers have met with success can't be claimed at this point in time.

Apart from that, the young music video directors (perhaps the adjective ‘young' doesn't apply to them anymore) also intend to make films. Saqib Malik was thought to be working on a script. Jami and Ahsan Rahim are passionate about the genre. Still, a concerted effort on their part hasn't been seen.

Young Indian filmmakers, for sure, have grasped the technique of filmmaking. The quality of their camerawork, editing and post-production is fore sure top-notch. But gone are the days of message-oriented cinema. Not that it isn't made anymore, every now and then a films like Peepli Live or Firaq hit the cinema screens and make you mull over certain issues for a while (the role of the media; Hindu-Muslim schisms etc). One has to hand it to Indian directors for finding their voice amidst a cacophony of commercial, song and dance sequences. Even superstars like Aamir Khan and Shahrukh Khan nod in the affirmative for projects that are less likely to rake up money (Taare Zameen Per, Chuk De India).

So it's a mixed bag. If the Indian film industry has acquired the necessary technical means, it still needs to work on the content (if the business of moviemaking has to have a purpose). In Pakistan, we lag behind both on technical and contextual fronts, though the talent is there to catch up with their international counterparts.