"India is at the center of the world, and I am at the center of the center".This line, spoken by Jamal's brother Salim,somewhere in the middle of the movie, as he looks down from a skyscraper into the slums from where he came , probably best sums up the position of 'Slumdog Millionaire' today.The most vociferous reactions to this astounding sucess that has taken the whole worldwide entertainment industry by storm,have come from Indians.You have heard them all-the movie shows us in a poor light,it takes away from our achievements as a nation,and so on and so forth.Now hear me out-this movie is all about Bollywood.Thats right.I dont have to look at the credits to tell you that the screenplay and dialogues have very strong Bollywoood influences.The basic story, of course, is written by an Indian.
Lets look at some of the highlights of the screenplay-
Slumdog who becomes a mafia don's right hand man-think Bhiku Mhatre in 'Satya'
Good brother-bad brother-done to death in Hindi movies-think 'Ganga-Jamuna'[Dilip Kumar],'Deewaar'[Amitabh-Shashi Kapoor],'Ram-Lakhan'[Anil Kapoor-Jackie Shroff]-you get the drift.
Good brother-bad brother-done to death in Hindi movies-think 'Ganga-Jamuna'[Dilip Kumar],'Deewaar'[Amitabh-Shashi Kapoor],'Ram-Lakhan'[Anil Kapoor-Jackie Shroff]-you get the drift.
Childhood sweetheart from the slums who sticks with the hero through tough times -think 'Parinda' again[Anil Kapoor-Madhuri Dixit]
Need more proof that this is a Bollywood love story,a typical 'poor boy who gets the girl and the glory in the end' story that has been done to death in our Hindi movies.Shouldnt we be pleased that an Indian story is making waves at box offices and award shows around the world?
What about the actors?Anil Kapoor ,Irrfan Khan and Saurabh Shukla are as Bollywood as you can get.And they play their parts competently-whether its Anil as the arrogant SOB superstar we all love to hate,Irrfan as the cop who can differentiate between the right and the wrong, and Saurabh S as his sidekick who has no sympathy for vermin slum dwellers.
Dev Patel and Frieda Pinto may not be part of Bollywood, but they are definitely 'Indian' actors ,judging from the sensibilities they bring to their roles.Freida lights up the screen with her smile, and the young Dev's sincerity tugs at your heartstrings.Together, they create hope and magic on the screen.You start rooting for these young lovers from the very beginning.Perhaps this touching, simple love story appealed to audiences round the world coz it was touching and simple!
Now for the big one,and this is what our NRI friends (and Mr.Bachchan)are most upset about-this film shows Indians in a bad light.Really?Isnt it true that Dharavi is Asia's largest slum?Isnt it true that Hindu-Muslim riots have happened in Bombay?Dont these slumdwellers actually live and exist among us good folks in our cities?The bai working in a posh Malabar Hill flat may be commuting from Dharavi everyday,the urchin selling magazines on Linking Road, the rag picker living at Churchgate station,they are all creatures of flesh and blood, like the thousands of better off Bombayites that they come across in our homes and on the streets everyday.If you cant bear to face reality ,I suggest you look the other way,as most Indians do anyway.And if you can actually feel happy if one of them makes it big, then the movie has achieved far more than its original purpose -to entertain audiences.
So, my dear friends and fellow Indians, its time to rejoice.Lets not fight this warm feeling ,the very same feeling that we get when India wins a test series, or Yuki Bhambri wins a grand slam tournament.Lets embrace this Indian movie whole heardtedly.Its as Indian as you and I.Its about Bollywood and its about India.How does it matter if some dumb members of an American or European audiences start believing that all Indians start life from a slum or work for the mafia at some time in their lives?Today,we are too self assured as a nation to worry about such silly notions that others may have about us.
It deosnt matter that this isnt Danny Boyle's best,neither is it A.R.Rehman's .These two gentlemen have proved their mettle in the past, again and again.Perhaps the awards were long overdue.Perhaps the Globes ,the BAFTAs and the Oscars want to appreciate these two gentlemen for their body of work, not just this movie.Does it really matter?
Yes, better,more deserving movies have been made in India this year.'Taare Zameen Par' was perhaps , a superior movie,fit for the international audiences and definitely award material.But then,the box office success of movies is highly unpredictable.Why did this movie make it big, we ask.Perhaps in these times of global recession, we needed a simple love story, a tale of triumph of the underdog to help us believe in love and hope and all those wonderful things that money cant buy.Perhaps the world was ready for a story about a slumdweller from Bombay getting the big bucks and the girl,coz a Black guy whose father is a Kenyan Musim just got in to White House.Who knows, who cares?Today its Will Smith, tomorrow it will be Brad Pitt who will want to work with Aishwarya Rai.
Guess who will have the last laugh ?
"Jai Ho!"
Your blog has aroused enough curiosity in me to want me to go and see the movie. Kaun dikhayega?
ReplyDeleteit's a good movie, not a great movie. only great movies deserve to be at the oscars
ReplyDeleteI got around to seeing Slumdog a couple of weekends ago and I honestly thought it was great. As for why it was a success, I think you hit the main points in your blog. One thing you didn't mention was the destiny component which, when done in a non-cheesy sorta way, can be gripping and uplifting. It's also another standard Bollywood tactic, isn't it? It's not used so much in American movies (probably cause protestant puritans are control freaks! haha).
ReplyDeleteI liked your NRI observation, mainly because my dad felt the same way. I heard the Big B made a similar comment about the poverty in the film. It reminds me a bit of the Soviets in the 1960s (sorry dad, that's harsh, i know haha). They were so behind the US that they chose total secrecy to conceal their backwardness. NRIs probably say things like, "there's so much good in India right now, so why focus on the bad when we're just coming up?" But if you look at the great nations in the west, they are all self-critical. If India gets too self-satisfied with where it is today, it'll never move forward.
a widespread western acceptance of a story 'based abroad' and if directed by a white man, expectedly, earns generous compliments of the reviewers seen on full display in global press. just like some of the premier dissenting economists during subprime disaster lost their membership of the elitist 'economists' club the movie critics dare not abandon the herd if they want to be counted when corralled at the end of the day. very few capture the essence of this cultural practice. for a moment, if you switched the mindset and watched slumdog like it were made by a subash ghai or manmohan desai, with titles in english, i betcha, it won't rise above the typical bollywood fare. of course, i enjoy euphoria as much as the next guy but my complaint is: where is of the bollywood, for the bollywood, by the bollywood. slumdog is an irishsman's vision.
ReplyDeletetailpiece: last week, a 70 year old greek cabbie told me that one of his favorite movies ever is Mother India. Now that's BOLLYWOOD talking. a memorable 1957 movie nominated under foreign language category.
moral: jolly good bollywood and woody the woodpecker.