Films 2009 – History Can Wait

The end of a calendar year provides for stock-taking and also satisfies our urge to analyze, categorize or generalize films as we attempt to tag and file this part of Bollywood’s past for recent history. For a year that started with an incredible mindless tamasha like Chandni Chowk to China (CCTC) and downed the shutters with Munnabhai-with-a-preachy-wrench-in-hand, the year 2009 in the long run would be just another year for movie-goers in India – while it’ll not lay claim to start a fresh chapter in Bollywood history, and yet squeeze-in a space in its thick folder.

2009 will perhaps be best remembered for the miraculous success of Slumdog Millionaire. The film was vibrantly paced with a feel-good ending, but for most part it was mediocrity wrapped up in finely crafted (& eventually marketed) package. Yet for the eagerness with which everyone co-opted with it and made Slumdog an overwhelming success, we all wished this was a core Bollywood production than a surprise gift from firangees.

This year saw a string of releases with eye-popping budgets and mind-numbing storylines that made one wonder if economic slow-down was a three-legged animal in Africa. Films like CCTC, Kambakht Ishq, Blue, Dil Bole Hadippa, Luck, Victory, Billu, Acid Factory and Tasveer lacked the minimal presence of cinematic creativity while their marketing team worked overtime to bring unsuspecting public to the screens on the opening days allowing the films to often open well. To splurge huge sums of money in such ill-devised star-vehicle films must have meant paucity of funds for making lower budget but better films.

2009 was a good year for Anurag Kashyap for it saw the release of two of his films. Dev D was more satisfying of the two; it was not only a good adaptation and a story well told in psychedelic, absurdist style but also achieved commercial success. Gulaal was a tad disappointing on both counts. Vishal Bharadwaj could not repeat the magic of Omkara, but managed a successful show with stylized treatment and excellent songs in Kaminey. Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra’s nostalgic over-indulgence in Delhi 6 smothered some very bright facets put together with honesty in what could have been an even better film. R. Balki’s Paa, distinctly half-excellent & half-average film, keeps up the hope of seeing more good stuff by him. If Shimit Amin’s Rocket Singh whets the appetite but does not satisfy its only because he himself set very high standards with Chak De. More disappointing were Imtiaz Ali’s Love Aaj Kal and Madhur Bhandarkar’s Jail. While Imtiaz’s direction is self-assured and consistent his material is sub-standard. On the other hand, Jail is a badly made film in every respect; it could easily be the most disappointing film of the year but for Ashutosh Gowarikar’s ‘What’s Your Rashee?’

This year-end also saw the release of much awaited ‘3 Idiots’. It was a good opportunity for Hirani to come out of the Munnabhai phase but it seems the director is happily stuck there. Only, he cannot keep up the whackiness and humour of the original. While Munnabhai’s street-smartness and humane wisdom were appealing, baba Ranchordas Chanchad’s pravachans are as tiresome as Ram Nikumbh’s in Taare Zameen Par. Every formula from the Munnabhai book is overdone and stretched with often good pay-offs in laughter and tears but ones that does not last once the film is over. In 3 Idiots, there’s not a single profile of students between the top two and bottom two and not a single teacher who knows how to teach. It’s Ranchordas all the way. The film could easily have been named ‘1 Idiot and 2 Stooges’ (it was amusing to see producer Vidhu Chopra tagging his name close to director Hirani’s whenever the latter appeared in credits). 3 Idiots reminded me of another formulaic film of this sort that worked, Ajab Prem ki Ghajab…’ and brought back the apparently desperate director, Raj Kumar Santoshi back into play.

There were some medium and small budget films this year that kept the torch of sensible cinema alive; these were the kind of films (despite their shortcomings) one would hope to see more of in the coming year. Nandita Das’s Firaaq would top my list here. Zoya Akhtar’s Luck By Chance, Ayaan Mukherjee’s Wake Up Sid, Sooni Taraporewala’s Little Zizou, Pankaj Advani’s Sankat City and Shashank Ghosh’s Quick Gun Murugan were some of the efforts that make movie-going worthwhile and also establish a saner voice in the cacophony of misplaced passions of films like New York or Kurbaan.

2009 would also be remembered for establishing the talents of actors like Ranbir Kapoor, Sonam Kapoor and Mahie Gil. Pritam gave some hummable tunes but could not beat the earthy appeal of Vishal Bharadwaj. A ‘Jai Ho!’ to Gulzar too (for Kaminey and Slumdog).

Older traditions of following the stars, ignoring the script, stealing ideas from Hollywood and elsewhere continued this year while some new ones also gained ground. One of the more conspicuous elements was the extremely aggressive marketing strategies that spent whopping crores that were not selling films but forcing them down the audience’ throats.