NFAI adds Notable Foreign Films to its Collection

In another significant acquisition, National Film Archive of India (NFAI), Pune has added a number of foreign films to its rich collection!

The acquired titles are all internationally acclaimed, having been honoured at festivals such as the Cannes Film Festival, the Academy Awards, the Golden Globes Award, the British Academy Film Awards and the Robert Awards (Danish equivalent of the Academy Awards). The titles include three films from France (Lemming – 2005, Invasions Barbares – 2003 and The Beat That My Heart Skipped – 2005), one from Belgium (l’enfant – 2005), a gripping political thriller from Denmark (Kongekabale – 2004) and one film from Bosnia and Herzegovina (Gori Vatra – 2004). The plot of Lemming (2005) follows a strange dinner party after which the attendees make discoveries about their seemingly well-ordered hosts. Invasions Barbares (2003) revolves around a terminally ill professor whose illness helps him reunite with important people in his life. Gori Vatra (2004) depicts the aftermath of the Bosnian War and the U.S. President’s impending visit.

                    

It is notable that the film The Beat That My Heart Skipped (2005) by the path-breaking French filmmaker Jacques Audiard is also part of this collection. The film follows the life of a deceitful young realtor and whether he will grow out of his ways to fulfil his dream of becoming a concert pianist. The Dardenn brothers’ film l’enfant (2005) was a winner of the Palme D’Or at the 2005 Cannes Film Festival, and revolves around a young couple trying to fend for themselves by committing theft. These 6 films were acquired from Mumbai resident Shri. Narayan Srinivasan.

Another lot of Iranian films was acquired from the Iranian Embassy in Mumbai. The collection includes celebrated Iranian filmmaker Mohsen Makhmalbaf’s highly acclaimed film The Peddler (1989) and the documentary ‘The Afghan Alphabet’ (2002) by Makhmalbaf. The acquired titles also include Pouran Derakhshandeh’s Wet Dream (2005) and Shahram Assadi’s Avinar (1991).

"We are proud to have a representative collection of world cinema, and thrilled to acquire these notable titles which have enriched our collection”, shared Shri. Prakash Magdum, Director NFAI. He also appealed to the public to submit any such rare, archival film material and join us in our mission to preserve India’s cinematic heritage.

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After Tendulkar, Paresh Rawal Want to Shoot Politicians

Noted film and theatre actor Paresh Rawal created storm in Pune saying that he sometimes wants to become naxalite and criticized the politicians as very substandard people.

Rawal was felicitated in the city on Monday with ‘Pu La Sanman’. After the ceremony, he vented his ire through an open interview. When asked what does he think about today politics, he minced no words in venting his anger.

“What should I say? They are very third-rate people, mean creatures with no morality. After watching corruption around me, I sometimes want to join naxalites and shoot them all. I sometimes think why no revolution takes place in our country,” he said.

He added, “People like us who have money feel the hardships. What must the common people be feeling,” he said.

This reminds of the statement made by late theatre legend Vijay Tendulkar, who created a storm about eight years ago when he said that he wanted to shoot Narendra Modi. “If I had a pistol, I would have shot Narendra Modi,” he said during one of his famous interviews.

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Nilu Phule Gets Tribute From Mother Organisation

Rashtra Seva Dal, an arm of the socialist organisations, paid tribute to one of its illustrious members on Sunday by opening an art academy in his name. The academy, named after actor Nilu Phule, will conduct classes in acting, dance and singing.

Nilu Phule, a thespian of the Marathi and Hindi theatre and movies, was a member of the Rashtra Seva Dal before he rose to prominence. Till his death in July 2009, he was a dedicated worker of the organisation. To preserve his memories as a social worker, the organisation came up with the thought of building an academy. It took off with the inauguration of acting workshop on Sunday.

According to Deepak Rege, director of the academy, each workshop will be of 15 days and total 20 hours of training will be given to students in each workshop. Training on videography, editing and audiography will be added later. These workshops will be run all year long and keeping in socialist tradition, the fees for these courses will be kept low. Makarand Tillu, renowned artist, was present at the inaugural workshop.

The Rashtra Seva Dal came up with the idea to start such an academy after it conducted number of workshops teaching dance, music and even acting. Rege said, “There are a number of institutes right now teaching these type of things. However, they are limited to the affluent class. We want to create new artists with a clear consciousness to help the society. These were the ethos of Nilubhau and need to be imbibed in the next generation.”

Reminiscing about his association with Phule, Rege said, “Even though we met quite often, I could never act with him. At that time, he used to tour part of the month for plays and remaining part was given for shooting. I was working with a bank then and used to take part in plays after service hours. Because of this, we could never tour or work together.”

“Since this is a socialist organisation, we want to reach to every sphere. Younger generation want to learn every type art forms. This is evident from the audience present here. We got 100 to 150 calls within a month after we announced the opening,” said Suresh Deshmukh of Rashtra Seva Dal.

He said, “It was characteristic of Nilu Phule that he remained a hard core humanist till last. Today’s artists throw tantrums at the first chance they get in TV or other mediums. We are teaching the students to avoid this. In another words, this is an attempt to create a gentleman from them.”

Deshmukh said that the organisation is charging Rs 4,000 which includes lodging and food charges as well. He said, “I have seen talent at rural places. The young ones in villages can learn the art here and practice it in their place as well.”

Abhijit Kosambi, winner of the Saregama championship, will be training the students in singing. He said, “It was because of the guidance given by Phule sir that I ventured into singing. I am very thrilled that I will be a part of the exercise associated with his name.” He reminisced how Phule was humility personified and reminded the students that the greatness of the heart makes an artist great.

Offering a tribute to Phule, Sandhyatai Kate, a veteran theatre personality who worked with the thespian in many folk plays, reminded that Phule used to experiment a lot in his plays. “He along with Ram Nagarkar used to play pranks and make additions during plays which put other artists on toes. But that made the entire experience interesting one,” she said.

Nilubhau And RSD

Nilu Phule started his career with Rashtra Seva Dal, which had an art wing, during the independence struggle period. He mainly acted in plays which gave a strong message of socialism, humanitarianism and political agitations. He was the head of the art wing in Pune of the organisation during late 1950s. His major plays with the organisation include ‘Yeragabalyache Kam Nahi’, ‘Kunacha Kunala Mel Nahi’, ‘Binbiyanche Zad’ and ‘Pudhari Pahije’.

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The Education In Bad Light

It is education which is making news in Maharashtra since last two weeks. There was also a bit of entertainment to it also. First the issue rose up in the form of controversy over a movie, then the talk centred around appointment of head at university and then a deemed university was striped off its status.

Shikshanachya Aicha Gho, a movie directed by Mahesh Majarekar, attracted too much criticism from organisations and educationists. The name is a form of abuse and many people were enraged that a ‘pious’ entity  like education should be subjected to foul language. In the modern tradition of special screenings for the noise making personalities, the director showed the movie to objecting representatitives paving the way for the release of movie with an apology note.

Then the appointment process of six universities in the state became a target of criticism as well as accusation. Selectors are accused of favouritism and discrimination. The process now has reached to court with an organisation approacging the court.

But the bolt came with the declaration that Tilak Maharashtra Vidyapeeth, a deemed university is to be stripped off its status. The announcement has put future of many students in the dark exposing loopholes of the system. The talk will reside with the passage of time but will it address the real problem? That is an open question.

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If You Want Entertainment, Look No Further

_{All YOU HAVE TO DO IS WATCH NEWS CHANNELS}

India is a country rich with history. Many people have inhabited here living their lives full or void of any action. I wonder how they passed their time when there was no television or to be specific, news channels. What sort of entertainment exactly filled their existence surpassing other forms of pastimes. Being born in an era when even tape recorders, forget the idiot boxes, were hard to be found, one can easily ask for the details to this creature. But that was far away in the locked doors of my memories. They have already been blurred by the continuous bombardment of images in the aftermath of that age of innocence. One reason why I cannot recall the things people did to amuse themselves was that I was a mere child then. Most of my waking time was spent in worrying about my studies and it was proved beyond doubt in later period that the worrying was not uncalled for, because I could never do anything memorable in my academic career.

By the time I was accustomed to the torment on account of the studies, a tape recorder entered the life to accompany an old radio set. Poor thing radio, it worked on vacuum tubes. But its efficiency was never surpassed by any instrument which tried to fill the vacuum which was apparent there when the radio set did not blare any program. The arrival of tape recorder set the tone for influx of the audio cassettes by all and sundry in the household. Each member tried to bring the cassette as per his own choice. Shortly thereafter, the television arrived on the scene.

From the day the TV set came in, confusion has prevailed on the viewer as to what is entertainment and what is not. The foremost use our TV set was put to was to watch the live cremation ceremony of Indira Gandhi, late prime minister of India. Whole of surrounding areas thronged our old house then to catch the glimpse of young Rajiv Gandhi setting fire to the sandal pyre of his slain mother. Sobs could be heard from the each and every corner of the room where the TV set was put up. That was my first experience of surround sound!

As the days followed, the same confusion prevailed. The programs which Doordarshan, the only boradcatser at that time which has only a meager airtime of eight hours a day, beamed thinking that people will relish them were discarded without any hesitation. Programs which were supposed to educate the people were instantly lapped up as being most entertaining. Films Division’s documentaries always fell in the latter category. I remember we younger lot always looked forward to the election time because DD had a knack of turning into a movie channel when results were declared. That habit was in vogue till as late as 1990s. Bosses in DD thought that people in Maharashtra will be dying to know who was elected from the Hardoi in Bihar or viewers in Uttar Pradesh will be deprived of valuable knowledge nutrients if they do not know who was defeated in Thiruchchi. So they always intertwined old movies in between the programs which gave shape to the careers of Pranav Roy and Vinod Dua.

The same fate has now befallen on the news channels which are supposed to relay newer information. But seeing these channels is no less than an amusing distraction for a common man like me. They have all the spices to fill your dish making sure that you are never short of amusement nutrients. Like when a simple act of launch of party manifesto is turned into major serial for three consecutive days stretching the every corner of imagination’s limits. In addition to the sundry details of promises in the party’s ritualistic paper coming out at every election, the reporters of the channel do not tire of reminding you what the party piece has been missing in it.

Their latest muse seemed to be fixed not on the elections but shoes. About a month ago, each alternate two days, we heard of someone throwing his shoe at someone. The moment such an incident took place, you were bombarded with the clippings of past such incidents ranging from Iraq to China. You are not forgiven if you dare to question the authenticity of the information or the limits to which the coverage can go. It is okay to say that you have the remote control in the hand and you can change the channel anytime. But what can one do when every channel is playing the same footage and playing same nonsense game.

After the election results, it was proved that predictions from all channels were gone awry. Not to learn anything from this, the channels starting blaring one dose of sycophancy after another. One particular family in the country is labeled as the sovereign leaders of the land. As if it is not sufficient, the clips from Bollywood movies are played in between. It has become a staple for the channels. So much so that the entertainment and news are mixed irrevocably. That is why, if you want entertainment, do not go further. News channels are here.

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First French Movie

Thanks to NFAI, I Could Watch It

First time in my life, I watched a French movie a day before yesterday. It was a beautiful movie telling a story of two young girls with dreams in their eyes. Though I understand French a little, it was easy to understand the movie because of subtitles.

French films are screened in Pune time and again but I do not get a chance see them. For one reason or another, I have always missed the bus. This time round also, I could not go to the all movies because of office timings. It was a chance holiday on May 1 that enabled me to attend the screening. There was a motley group of about 100 people to see the film. Although, I doubt how many of them came out of the love of French language because as far as I could see, the majority of them were from Film and Television Institute of India.

The movie was a part of the French film festivals organized in Pune by National Film Archives of India with the co-operation of Embassy of France in India. La vie rêvée des anges, that was the title of the movie. The film festival started on May 1 and will go on till tomorrow.

Before the start of the festival, India and France signed an agreement to donate 234 films to India. The films are donated from the library of embassy of France to NFAI.

All these films are produced in France. An agreement to this effect was signed on April 30 at NFAI by Philippe Martinet, Cultural Counsellor, Embassy of France and Vijay Jadhav, Director, NFAI will sign the agreement.

This is one more time that NFAI will get a treasure of French movies. In 2003 also 88 films were handed over to NFAI by Embassy of France. Before that, Earlier, in 1998, the Embassy of France donated 29 films to the National Film Archives of India.

Under the agreement, these films will be preserved at NFAI. They will have non-commercial screenings, research and studies. An embassy press release said that the Embassy of France in India is committed to strengthening the relations between cultural institutions of our two countries towards achieving this goal.

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PIFF gets State Sponsorship

The organisers of the 7th Pune International Film Festival should go home singing now. The state government, which was unable to curb rising numbers of farmer's suicides has lend a helping hand to the organisers.Even though the powers that be do not know how the common public will watch movies without electricity, it has went ahead with the promise of sponsoring the annual event.

 

Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan announced on Thursday that from next year onwards the state government will be officially connected with the Pune International Film Festival. From now on, PIFF 2010 will be a joint venture of the Maharashtra Government and the Organising Commiittee. Speaking as the chief guest at the concluding ceremony of PIFF, said he wants to see Maharashtra as number one not only in production of films but also in industry, business and other areas. he did not forget to praise Suresh Kalmadi, Member of Parliament from Pune for grand manner of his organization.
 

The festival saw usual awardees in the usual categories. With this offer of sponsorships, one is tempted to expected that the city will boast more and more cinemas from all over the world. But the mind is more practical and  knows that it will hardly come by.

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Film Festival : Does It Help

The Pune International Film Festival was inaugurated yesterday. It was made to be a great event by all and sundry. Looking from the standpoint of an average cinegoer, I do not find it much exciting. They say the film festival is the place where you can have a vast view of cinema. For me, it is a place where those films are shown which can not stand in the theatre on their own.

Iranian films are hailed by everyone citing their content, which they say is ‘contemporary.’ To my mind, it is because they always portray Iran as others, particularly West, want to see. I have serious doubts whether people speaking on behalf of conneseaurs really have different aesthetic view than that of Hollywood. That is why no South Indian film is showcased in the current festival even though the current rage in Hindi viewers, Ghajini is a three year late remake of a successful Tamil films.

Coming to the speeches at PIFF, Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting & External Affairs Anand Sharma was quoted as saying that film making in India should continue to remain connected with social realities and problems and keep hopes alive in the poor as they have been in the past. One fails to understand what social realities he was talking about. Even when protagonist of Hindi flicks were used to be from common masses, as was used to be in Amithabh Bachchan films, it was far away from reality. Now, Hindi films no more happen in India. They either take place on an exclusively reserved paradise-like islands or in Mauritius or any other country, willing to welcome Bollywood in exchange of good money.

Sharma also said that films should reflect the social challenges such as poverty, hunger, empowerment, violence and terrorism that confront us and we cannot allow these problems to overwhelm us. Since when was cinema a tool in fighting the social vices? People who used to make films based on these themes, were skilled in getting monetary help from government departments. Movies made with government money were showcased in festivals in other countries. That is why even festivals in India are unattended by public at large who has made Bollywood so big a industry. This is the seventh edition of PIFF taking place and history shows that forget about foreighn films, English films have been confined to multiplexes only. Audience for the non-Hindi regional films has seen a significant increase. Even second rate dubbed films are raking in money in Pune’s theatres. So much for the film festivals and enlightnement of the masses!

Veteran actress Sulochana, filmstar Shashi Kapoor and well known actress Hema Malini were conferred the lifetime achievement award for their contribution to Indian cinema. This was the only welcome thing in the PIFF as they deserve it.

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The Trip To kolhapur

Just last month I, together with my family visited the city of Kolhapur. Kolhapur is known for the Mahalaxmi temple which is centuries old. It was also the city where one of the seat of Maratha empire was situated. I was very eager to visit this place and happy this time that I could eventually realize my dream.

The history of Kolhapur stresses to many centuries. In the ancient times, it was known as Karvirnagari. The Mahalaxmi temple, which houses the idol of Godess Laxmi is at least seven centuris old. It is built in the old Hemadpanti style of archtitecture. This temple showcases the most intrinsic style of designing as well as decoration. Surprisingly, even though Mahalaxmi is considered to be godess of money, her temple is bereft of the money extracting methods emloyed by most of the Hindu religious shrines all over India.

The city stands on the bank of river Panchaganga. It is known as "Dakshin Kashi" on account of the deity "Mahalaxmi" or "Ambabai". Kolhapur is archaeologically an important place in India due to the ancient temple of "Goddess Shri Mahalaxmi ". The place of "Jyotiba" is about 15Kms towards north of the city. The famous hill station "Panhala" is about 18 Kms towards North West of the town.

This city is also home to the palace belonging to Shahu Maharaj, who was a descendant of Chhatrapati Shivaji. Shahu Maharaj was a great administrator himself and he carried out various reforms in his tenure which paved the way for Dalits and backward classes to stake claim to the education as well as other opportunities. It is a well known fact that it was Shahu Maharaj who helped Dr. Babasaheb Amberdkar for his education.

Kolhapur has many places which stand witnesses to its glorious past. There are palaces built by Maratha kings. Panhala fort, a major tourist attraction is very near to the city. Also, Kolhapur is home to the Marathi films and shootings are still done at various places in and around the city.

The city is also famous for its wrestling tradition. Kolhapur city and its surrounding regions prominently come under the sugarcane belt where the sugarcane is main cash crop.

We could visit the temple and also see the Rankala lake which has become an icon for the city. The lake was built in the last leg of 18^th century. Its sorrounding as also nearness with Shalini Palace makes it a beautiful place. Many a romantic couple can be spotted here at any time in the day. We did the trip in a day. With the travel between Pune and Kolhapur only three and half hour, it was one of the most convenient trips that I have done.

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Hollywood faded out

Where would the English movie viewers go to watch their favorite and anticipated films? That is the question looming large in the minds of those who watch Hollywood stuff frequently. The regular theatres for the English movies are fast turning into endangered species. They are shrinking to exhibit the stuff in the fear of loosing the profit in the favor of dubbed movies. Dubbed movies also are fast encroaching on the space for the original Hollywood stuff.

It was in the year 1994. First ‘Jurassic Park’ had made waves in the pre-publicity era and its release was widely expected. When the movie actually hit the theatres, it came in two separate versions i.e. English as well as Hindi. That heralded a trend whereby more and more foreign films were dubbed in Hindi and few other regional languages. That business strategy paid off very well paving the way for major and minor Hollywood studios to set up their offices here itself.

What happened to English films later took place with films in other languages too. Chinese, Japanese, French and so many other films started making rounds. Not only through theatres, but through pirated CDs and DVDs too. Increasingly people started to see English films in their language instead of the original ones. The things have come to such a pass that ‘Spiderman 3’ last year was dubbed in Bhojpuri, a first for any Hollywood or for that matter, any non-Bhojpuri. The trend continued unabated and ‘A Night in Museum’ was released in India in only Hindi. However, the film was available in English on DVD circuit.

Rising localization and increasing competition has made original Hollywood films now as rare as old Hindi flicks. Either you see Hindi dubbed versions or else you see nothing. Even some multiplexes are going for the dubbed versions. In short, the day is not far away, when one will have to ask : English films, where are they?

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The King rocks...as always

It is full three decades since he breathed last. Even then music lovers, especially those who are not confined to their genres, all over the world are swayed by his music as they were in old days. The magic that the name of Elvis Presley spells is as strong today as it was thirty years ago. No one could match his enthusiasm nor could anyone attain his unique style...few of them could indeed went in their skills as far as the King himself, but the public acceptance always illuded them...it was the unique domain for the man.

I remember hearing for the first time the name of Elvis Arron Presley way back in 1992. I had some good habits accompanying me in those days. One of them was to wake up early in the morning and tuning to the Doordarshan news in the breakfast show was next to ritual thing. In one of those aquainatcnes I caught this name in connection of a news item. The story referred to a postal stamp issued by the US Postal Department in Elvis's memory. That piece of news, information provided with it and few clippings of his movies and songs...that was the stuff I was prevy to. That memories have long been remained with me.

It took some five years before I realised, albeit partially, what Elvis meant and who he was. Around that time itself, a piece in the Telugu daily 'Eenadu' caught my attention which reported the annual festival at Graceland. That aroused my curiosity. What I got to knew was enough to take me further searching for him...a singer and musician who died at the bare age of 42, one who took US rock music to some new heights, which were never attained before. It would not be unworthwhile to say that he singlehandedly popularised rock music in the masses.

During those dreamy days, I happened to hear `Jailhouse Rock' and something clicked in me. Haven't I heard this same song already, somewhere...somehow? And I got the answer suddenly...The movie 'Dil' featuring Amir Khan and Madhuri Dixit has a peppy and popular number 'Khambe Jaisee Khadee Hai.' The rhythm and beats were unmistakable. On the same line, one could graps the inspiration behind `Bachana e Hasino,' from Hum Kisi Se Kum Nahee. Numerous songs in Hindi films owe their existence from Elvis songs and music.

One question remains: What Elvis did? The answer is simple. He brought the Rock music to the centrestage of musicworld. When Elvis was but a rising star, Jazz and Blues were dominated by the Blacks. Whites had had only country music to tell the world. But the world cared a damn to hear the music. And classical western music was of only a few elite. Elvis made the world to lend an ear to the Rock music. Much as his movements were eye appealing, but they were equally matched by his crooning abilities. He gave voice to all the anger of the youth...that of the post-War generation, the flower children or even a restive young generation of the Seventies.

The name given to the elvis, The King, could not have been more apt. Many dressed in his attire, many aped his hairstyle, but the royal aura built around him could not be created by anyone. The King reigned supreme. It was his sole domain...none dare come there. As every year, many of his fans congregated at his memorial at Graceland. If asked, they would tell only one thing...

The King rocks...as always.

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Rajnikant : The new movie icon of India

The new frontiers

As the monsoon has set in the this nation, which is stretched from Himalayas to the Indian Ocean, the news of Sivaji-the Boss conquering one after another box office records are also pouring in. In the hitherto untreaded parts of the country, where regional films were strictly a no-no till now, the film is marching ahead to say the least. Not only in India, but even in overseas markets also it saw even the Hollywood blockbusters in the fray bite the dust in top ten charts. It seems that whole of India is rediscovering this Style King often derided for his mannerisms which many others have tried to ape but fail the produce the charm that Rajni has.
That also made the reigning Superstar of North India (devotees of Big B, please excuse me, but that’s the kind of address more often than not used in Tamil and other South Indian press) to attend a special screening of the film. The Boss was also there with him. And even BigB praised Rajni on the occasion. He has already praised the Thalaivar as the emperor of Indian cinema.

The next question

Now, question arises: Is Rajnikant the next movie icon of India? What Rajnikant has achieved is undoubtedly one of the biggest feats in movie industry in India as well as overseas. First of all, he climbed to the stardom in spite of any real backing from the industry. He has proved his mettle through his talents and mannerisms and most of all, his unparalleled ability to churn out films successively single handedly. In likes of MGR and Shivaji Ganeshan, not least Kamal Haasan, he created a place for himself that was unique in every sense. After appearing in some remakes of Amitabh Bachchan, he was described as Amitabh of Tamil movies.
Then in 1983, just eight years after he made his entry on silver screen, Rajnikant starred in the Hindi movie Andha Kanoon, which had Amitabh himself in what was said to be a `guest appearance’ role but extended to a large part of the film, convincingly. That success set up a train of some flicks, some of them making hay on box office while some bringing tears to the producers and distributors. Rajni then satisfied himself with some petty side roles in Bollywood while consolidating his position in his home (?) industry. But even so, his popularity and fan following in rest of India continued to grow. His image as an maverick was also reinforced through the new media like internet, even though there he was more present through the odd jokes.
But to speak of it, Rajinikant was the only non-Hindi actor to gain a large audience in the northern parts of India. His predecessors, like MG Ramachandran never quite entered in this specter, or some like Shivaji Ganeshan could only appear in one or couple of flicks. They never really have a base here. Even Kamal Haasan, who entered Hindi films with a bang through Ek Duje Ke liye (1980), could not make a mark here barring some odd films and a distant admiration from critics. (It was very later, in late ‘80s that Kamal made his re-entry through films like Appu Raja.) Chiranjeevi, Venkatesh, and Nagarjun…all these heroes came and went but except for registering their presence, they could hardly do anything. In that sense, Rajnikant was the first and only southern hero who could navigate the box office.

A large vacuum to fill

Now with Sivaji, Rajni has arrived on the centrestage and with what role, a man single-handedly taking the system by the horns. Many a Bollywood heroes had their careers built on this his image but in the last few years, in an era of globalization, Bollywood has largely discarded this category giving way to some ice-candy floss cinemas. While the former category of heroes and cinemas might appear old fashioned to some, in India these types of films do really capture the imagination of the people. That’s why actors in these types of films are more endeared to the public. This is the large vacuum, that now only Rajnikant can fill.
The process seems to have already started with Sivaji-the Boss gaining foothold even in non-Tamil speaking parts of India. If Rajnikant can bring the Tamil (or for that matter South Indian movie industry) with Bollywood, he will be the first to have this type of accomplishment. The day might be not far away when Bollywood, Kollywood and Tollywood would be amalgamated as one industry. The process has been already started with many a Tamil and Telugu films featuring prominent Hindi and Marathi artists in increasing numbers. And it will also be noted that the process was started by Rajni films whereby his Hindi films were dubbed in Tamil and vice versa (when the trend was almost non-existent.) His Dalpathi had Amrish Puri as the main villain.
In a nutshell, Rajnikant is set be a movie icon for the new India. Sivaji-the Boss’s collection records in UK and phenomenal rush it witnessed in Chicago, Muscat and Malaysia…you name it and he have it…only points to this fact. So toast to this new Sultan of the Indian Movies!

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Bollywood in the dock again

After seeing the most successful year in terms of business, the bollywood is again feeling the heat this year. Big stars, expensive sets and locations or media hype...almost everything has proven unsuccessful for the industry to churn out a single superhit in the first half of the year. What's more, the industry is staring at a big threat by down south to its monopoly over audience.
Barring just one 'Guru', directed by the veteran southern directior Mani Rathnam, no film has seen cash registers ringing. By the end of the June, Rajnikant's Sivaji has surpassed all the Hindi films in business. Even in the north cicuits like Delhi, it has made profits unseen by any southern film before. Even a Amithabh Bachchan starrer like Jhoom Barabar Jhoom failed to offer much resistance to the onslaught of Sivaji and now it seems the Kollywood express has much more steam than expected.
Last year, riding on the multiplex boom and a strong economy, many Bollywood films registered stupendous successes. Lago Raho Munnabhai, Krishh, Dhoom2..those were the movies that gave dose over doses of adrenaline to the producers. Nothing that sort of the thing happened now. In comparison, analysts said, the turnover in the first six months of 2007 was just a fourth of about $55 million collected during the same period in 2006.
Analysts are blaming to the weak scripts for the failures. "Where are the good stories? You can't get away with only star appeal and foreign locales," said Bollywood trade analyst Komal Nahta.
Guru was successful beacuse of its good script as well as hype that sorrounded it. The fact that the film was associated with the life of Reliance Group's founder, Dhirubhai Ambani, also gave the film an extra impetus. Compared to this one hit, the list of doomed big-budget films with top stars is long: "Salaam-e-Ishq," "Eklavya," "Nishabd," "Tara Rum Pum" and "Jhoom Barabar Jhoom," and many more.
This summer, Bollywood is also feeling the heat from Hollywood blockbusters. This week, five Bollywood films were beaten to dust by "Ocean's 13".
No Bollywood film was released on May 4, the day "Spiderman 3" hit the screens. Moreover, the distributors of the films tried to make dent in the traditional and emerging film markets by dubbing the film in Bhojpuri and other five languages. This films has become the highest-grossing Hollywood film in India, overtaking "Titanic."
Considering the heavy business Sivaji the Boss is doing and non-tamils are throngiing the cinema halls, a new curiosity might arise for the southern films which have hitherto been ahead in terms of content and technology than Bollywood. (Two of the blockbuster films from down south, Pokkiri and Gajini are being remade with Salman Khan and Amir Khan respectively.) So much so that going by the response to the Sivaji-the Boss, plans are in the pipeline to rehasp some old Rajni films and market them.

From that account, even if Bollywood successfully faces the onslaught of Hollywood, its real nemesis lies in south named Kollywood and Tollywood.

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Sivaji reigns, as always, but…

Sivaji-the entertainment personified
· Rajnikant’s latest flick Sivaji-the boss has hit theaters. After watching the movie seven days after its worldwide release, one is bound to be thrilled. The same emotion grips me as I remember the last night’s venture. First of all, I must say the film did not let me down. All the Rajni theatrics and elements were there to give every value for my money. It was down and down a Rajni movie and the whole three hours and twenty minutes of the movie does not allow you to forget that any moment. Rajni means entertainment…and the Boss shows that in the most entertaining way in his inimitable style and styles.
Sivaji-the director’s dilemma
· One has to remember also that it is Director Shankar’s film who has given us such memorable hits as Gentleman, Kadhalan, Jeans, Indian and the best of all Anniyan. Sadly though, in Sivaji, Shankar has failed to live upto his name. It is as though, he has reeled under the stature of Super Star Rajni than making the movie his own. All the scenes, barring those song pasteurizations where classic Shankar touch props up unstopping. The breathtaking locations, much larger than life exquisite sets, the zing thing orchestrations …you name it and Sivaji have it. But in the movie, right from the story no traces of director’s skill are evident. For once, comedy is the Rajni’s bastion and it does not take Shankar to make the comedy sequences memorable. Vivek and Rajni steal the show in their comedy scenes in the first half of the movie.
Sivaji-the momentous moments
· What overcomes the failings of the director have been compensated by the some very fast, really brilliant and full confrontation scenes wherein whole experience of watching the movie assumes new meaning. For example, the scene where Rajni blackmails Adisheshan (Suman) for his black money. You have to see to believe the unchallenged confidence of Rajni on the screen while he orders Bhajia and Tea for the twosome. After finishing the taling and (eating), he tells Adi, “Pay the bill for all this. We will settle it from 100 Crores.” Wow! Man! That sets the screen on fire. Equally astounding scene is in climax, where the students vying for the falling money trample Adi. That’s what we want to see in a Shankar movie. A social message, a kind of common man’s revenge in a very symbolic way, in a manner fit for the commercial flicks.
Sivaji-the unsung movie
· One big letdown of the movie is the music score by AR Rehman. One expects from the ‘Isai Puyal’ a thumping, vibrant and humming songs, the kind of which were present in Muthu and Padaiyappa. Even Baba score would fare better in comparison with the Sivaji. Except for Vaji Vaji song, no song clings to the nerves. Even the background score also do not match to the stature of Rajni film.
Sivaji-the boss of box office
· What Sivaji has achieved will be the subject of discussion for long in future. But it has indisputably bought to Indian regional cinema to the notice of the world cinema. After all when did you saw big queues lined up outside the theaters in the north India for a Tamil movie? When did you saw multiplexes in Mumbai increasing their no. of shows for a Tamil film in its second week? When did we saw a Tamil film finding its place in the top 10 films in UK? As I write this from Pune, five multiplexes and one single screen are running 16 shows daily for Sivaji, which is a feat for any regional film. It has wakened up to the fact that good or quality successful films are not the monopoly of the Hollywood or Bollywood. It has also shown the world that Rajnikant is not a subject of internet jokes only, but that he has far more substance than any other actor/hero in this country. In that sense, I think he is the most underestimated hero in India. Please check this and this to prove this point.

Sivaji-fumbled fairy tale
· Shankar seems to have fumbled while transferring the story from the storyboard to celluloid. While most of the half is spent in portraying the love story of the hero and heroine, second part tries to deal with three menaces at one go…i. e. black money, bribery and the menaces in the education system. That has created an unnecessary burden on the cinema as well as hero. Shankar’s earlier films centered on one theme and that ensued a big success for the flicks. Gentleman handled the problem of commercialization of the education system as Indian handled the bribery system of the country. Anniyan focused on the lawlessness in the citizens of India. It seems Shankar has tried to bundle all these themes in the one film. To be fair, he has succeeded in not making the affair a repetitive one. But it would have been better had he handled the one subject in this film. For that matter, one again thinks that had Mudhalvan been done with Rajni, we could have a movie of the lifetime. Sivaji leaves a lot to be wished.

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Sivaji-the spoiled status

Thank God, 'Sivaji the boss' is here. The total success of this film has lost its relevance for me and now, one has to resign himself to the fact that the movie has hit the halls. Till now we were only treated to the news of various hurdles coming in the way of this magnum opus of Tamil cinema. In the way, there was so much hype built up by media and Rajini fans that it was hard to forget the film for even a moment. So much so that some news channels had gone overboard to portray this film as the only offering from down south.
Now that the `Sivaji the boss' has just started to make waves in theatres, is it not time to ponder whether this film should have been given a fair treatment in terms of the publicity? First of all, the thing that played all over in the hype-trail of Sivaji was the amount Rajini fetched for this film. Some have quoted this amount to the tune of 16 Crores (160 million) Indian Rupees while others have went ahead to predict the amount to be some 20 Crores. Not dwelling much on this subject, one can only say that how can an actor’s remuneration be an attraction of the film. The expense occurred in the making of a film is not a sure guarantee of the quality for the film. This fact was more than evident in the case of Devdas (2002) starring Shahrukh Khan and Aishwarya Rai. That Sanjay Leela Bhansali, director of the film managed to get away with a success was a case apart. But the fact remains as it is.
As many ardent fans of Tamil movies and Rajinikant himself know, this is not the first time that Rajini has got this much big amount for his presence in film. He has constantly seen his price soaring to sky after the `once-in-a-lifetime’ success of his `Baasha’ in Tamil. The movie catapulted him to the new heights of superstardom and since then he has never looked back. He is since long been the numero uno of the Tamil movie industry. He commands and receives such prices, because distributors and producers believe in him alike. But that amount created ripples in North and people were awestruck with it. How can someone other than Amitabh Bachchan or Shahrukh Khan get this much money? Surely, Director Shankar and AVM Studios, the producers of the `Sivaji the Boss’ must have gone mad, was the common refrain. But that refrain gave way to a remote curiosity, by which the angle of viewing has got twisted.
A Rajini film is a complete entertainer. We have seen this in films like Muthu, Baasha, Padaiyappa and many more. One has to keep in mind while waiting or watching Sivaji. But now people throng and muse themselves, “Hey, let’s see this film. Come, let’s see why this guy has been paid so much for this film?” The reputation of director Shankar, a man known for his extravagant but socially relevant films like Gentleman, Indian (Hindustani), Kadhalan (Hum se Hai Mukabala) and Mudhalvan (Nayak), have been washed away by a wave named Rajinikant, whose own reputation as an actor has been faded away by the new image of highest paid actor in India.
With this background, can one expect a helthy discussion on Rajini’s performance, storyline of the film or music or any other aspect. Rarely one sees a hoopla hijacking a film’s credentials so overwhelmingly. With this background, one only hopes that Rajini’s status as an actor, and not as a highest paid actor be established through Shivaji.
(At the moment this post is written, Sivaji has arrived with a bang and with some rave reviews. In Pune, from where I am writing, the film is scheduled to arrive on 22nd June 2007. It means one has to wait one more week to see Rajini in action. Till then, we have to be satisfied with reading the reviews of the film.)

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Shivaji: How many hurdles?

There is a song in the movie Padayappa. That song literally means : There are a thousand hurdles in life, but for you, these hurdles are only a step. That fits well in the real life of the movie's hero Rajinikant as well.

At the one hand his 'Shivaji the boss' is creating much expexctations from all quarters. At the other hand, the perk and rumenaration that Rajni got has created a lot of buzzword. In Indian moviedom, there is hardly any actor at this moment to match his popularity and stature. Be as it may, rajinikant still faces some hurdles and as is shown in his many a films, he conquers them all. This time he has an uphill task ahead in his real life and every eye is on him now.Shivaji is directed by Shankar who gave us many hits like Kadhalan, Gentleman, Mudhalvan, Jeans and Indian. He is a stylish director but any director working with Rajini must bear one of the most daunting task and that task is to fulfill the public's expectations. And this task is compounded this time from the very first day of announcement of the 'Shivaji-the boss.' The difficulties faced by Rajinikant that I mentioned above starts from this severity. Rajini is not only the flagh bearer of Tamil film industry, he is an icon for millions of his rasigans. He might have enjoyed their fierce loyalty and unconditional love for over two decades, he also has to respond to their anticipations. That he does so time and again must be credited to his uncanny down-to-earthness.If he by chance misses the bus, a debacle is sure to follow as was proved at the time of Baba.To add to the woes of the Superstar, some external elements chip in, which make the outcome of a Rajni movie more thrilling than the movie itself. This time also, as the talk was on of Shivaji being a launch vehicle for the Rajini to his political career, there were many who contributed to the saga of Shivaji. First one was the Tamilnadu government itself which, fearing an onrush of the crowd and thereby encashment of the popularity by distributors, assumed all rights for the control of theatre ticket rates in Tamilnadu. As if it was not enough, VIjay T. Rajinder, an influencing personality in the Kollywood, cautioned against the hike of the ticket rates and declared that he will not sit quietly if the rates are increased.Then surfaced Rajinis' old nemesis, Pattali Makkal Katchi which raised its head again to oppose the Shivaji. It particularly targeted a song 'oru koodai sunlight, oru koodai moonlight,' on the pretext of using English words and sentences in the song. The party workers (or leaders?) even have shown readiness for an agitation for this cause. Pattali Makkal Katchi people have a history of opposing to Rajini, first time showing their trait at the time of release of Baba. But this time, Shivaji has faced resistance from one more quarter, and that is an unexpected one. A certain trade union in Thanjavoor has opposed some references to the Kaveri river in a song in Shivaji and they too seem ready for an agitation. What is funny in all this episode is the statement given by this union, in which it is said that Rajini has kept mum many times on Kaveri water dispute. That's why, according to this union, he has no right to use Kaveri's name in any song in his movie.As Shivaji-the boss has rewritten some records in the movie history of India, it has also has to face an unprecedented hurdle now. The Kannada Rakshan Vedike, an organisation specialing in isolating the Kannada peolple from neighbouring states, has decided to oppose the release of Shivaji-the boss in Karnataka. It is unusual development. Usually, even when non Kannada movies were banned or withheld from Karnataka (pls see some of my previous posts), Rajini films have been given the go. But this time now, the case is different. WIth the Kaveri tribunal award going in favour of Tamilnadu, Kannada Rakshan Vedike is full swing and to show its opposition to Tamilnadu, it has decided to play with Shivaji's prospects.

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CBFC certification: Telugu movies tops list

New Delhi, April 6 (PTI): Telegu movies have topped the list of feature films certified by the Central Board of Film Certification during last two years, according to figures available with the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting here.
A total of 245 Telegu films were awarded certificates. This was followed by Hindi films (223) Tamil films (162), Malayalam (77), Bhojpuri (76), Kannada (75) and Marathi 73, according to the official figures.
The CBFC in all issued a total of 10,551 certificates during the year 2006, as against 7,417 during 2005. As many as 3,454 certificates were issued to celluloid films and 7,097 to video films during this period. These consisted of 1091 Indian feature films (celluloid), and 336 foreign feature films (celluloid).
Out of 1636 Indian feature films (celluloid and video) certified during the period, 1130 were granted U certificates, 270 UA certificates, and 236 A certificates. Similarly, of the 1080 foreign feature films certified in the year, 460 were granted U certificates, 269 UA certificates, and 351 A certificates.
The Board certified a total of 7,242 Indian short films during the period January to December, 2006, of which 6,717 were granted U certificates, 359 UA certificates, 165 A certificates.
A total of 7097 certificates were issued to video films. Of these, there were 545 Indian feature films, 744 foreign feature films, 5494 Indian short films, 235 foreign short films, 75 Indian and 4 foreign films belonging to the Others category, long films other than feature.

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Himesh faces music in Germany

It is Germany again. I have talked about Bollywood films being popular in the beer country and loat of shows and shooting concerning Bollywood taking place there. It seems that the love between Germany and bollywood has stretched too far and cracks have begun to show.
Bollywood's current blue eyed boy Himesh Reshmiya is producing a film on his own life. This news item was flashed through various medias some time ago. At that time, no one cared much about the project. This same project has now created news in Germany for some wrong reasons. Reshmiya and his crew flew to Cologne this eek to film in one of the city's Gothic churches. But some residents opposed the shooting claiming the film crew had desecrated the site.
Bollywood has unarguably got a foothold in Germany. Indian films have made it onto German cinema and television screens and have a huge following. But Indian filmmakers have also discovered Europe offers prime locations for shooting. While they have already almost exhausted some scenic spots in the Alps, ever new locations are hunted zealously which make them constantly vulnerable to controversy.
The Agnes church is one of Cologne's biggest sacred buildings. Its gothic steeple rises up to the sky. Surrounded by cramped apartment buildings and busy streets, the landmark church is an oasis of calm .Amid that sorrounding, a voice drons out of the loudspeakers. That voice belongs to Himesh Reshamiyya. He plays the lead in the Bollywood film "Aap Ka Suroor," which is currently being shot in Germany.
Agnes church is one of the film's locations. The producers want to simulate a night-time concert in the huge nave and covered the windows and walls with black drapes. In a place where believers usually kneel down to pray, there are now 50 professional dancers in silver sequined dresses shaking their hips while a few hundred extras mill around waiting to play the cheering crowd.
But having fun and dancing in a church has raised a few eyebrows. Cologne's archbishop Joachim Meissner tried to stop the shooting from going ahead, but failed when it was revealed the church's pastor had already signed the contract with the production company.
Many parishioners are angry about the production. An elderly woman shakes her head as she enters the church and then turns to leave saying: "I wanted to pray, to light a candle."
Until Sunday, only the film team will be allowed to use in the main nave, which has upset more than a few people. They don't understand why she shoot has to take place in a building they consider holy. Deutsche welle recently reported about this episode. The full story is available on
http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,2387067,00.html

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Tollywood’s Sorry Picture

The picture can’t be more contradictory. On one hand, Hindi movie channels are running successfully showing dubbed and remake versions of Telugu films, which in all earnestness seem to be getting a lot of response from ­audience. At the same time, Telugu films themselves are facing a hard day in Andhra Pradesh itself. Having found itself in a quagmire of business losses and a stiff competition from Bollywood and Kollywood, it is striving hard to regain its land. But for the passive onlooker, that seems a distant possibility. What make it more pitiful is that this year Tollywood is celebrating its 75th year.
Telugu film industry in India has a unique standing. It has not only the distinction of being the third biggest film industry in India, in terms of films produced per year and the turnover achieved therein, it also thrives on many demi-gods and cult like fan following of some actors. These actors in turn have never let down their fans and have delivered year after year the films, that we relish even years later. That’s why a Chiranjeevi starrer ‘Gang Leader’ became a super hit in the latter part of 1980s and when it is shown on Star Gold in a dubbed version (named Naya Don), it still got a better TRP. It prompted the channel to show one more dubbed movie named ‘Vishwa’. It was a Nagarjun starrer which was released in 2004 as ‘Nenunnanu.’ The trend continued and rival channel Zee Cinema started to show some dubbed Chiranjeevi movies in prime time. Diler (Anji) and Rakshak (Mrugraju) are two films falling in this category.
It is not that all Telugu films sell on star value. They usually have a strong story element with eye-catching picturisation and of course, a great music. That was the case till recently, i.e. till last year. Now it is almost a sorry picture. Tollywood has seen too many flops for the last couple of years and it is frantically searching for a hit. Even superstars like Chiranjeevi and Nagarjun are finding it difficult to break this mould. One problem that these actors face is the non-availability of good roles. They have been caught in a kind of trap where they can’t play the roles they wish.
In a recent interview, Chiranjeevi has said, “"My image troubles me in different ways. I cannot act in roles different from that of mass commercial ones due to image." That brings the real dilemna of a hero who has steadfastly lead the industry for more than a decade. Lack of worthwhile stories and too much insistence on the routine formulas, that have proved to be a bane for Tollywood. The producers in the industry seem only working for garnering the monetary profit from the films without giving a hint of thought as to what its outcome might be. Trying to emulate the Bollywood for that purpose is just a way of doing that. That’s why heroines and character artists from Mumbai find their way in Telugu films these days more and more. Add to that song (and they abound to the hilt) and dance sequences picturised on the exotic foreign locations. Not surprisingly, the budget of the film skyrockets to few crores. Given the stiff competition in this era, this money is hardly recovered giving more sleepless nights to everybody associated with the project. Even the advertising cost of the film amounts to few crores.
From the start of this year, 40 films have been released in Andhra Pradesh and only two of the proved to be a hit. That’s why trade pundits are anticipating a bleak show ahead. Sankranti season, in which Tollywood is expected to make fortune did not yield expected revenue. Filmmakers and industry insiders are now pinpointing their hopes on summer season. Holidays to school and colleges mean a boon to the film circuit. Many big films are expected in this season. So one can only hope their expectations come true and we are treated to an entertaining fair once again, like we were in the past.

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Indian movies growing out of all woods

The film industry in India could not have better than this. After witnessing its most successful year in the recent past in terms of box-office collections, the industry is poised to grow even more. And this is not an abstract anticipation of any Bollywoodwallah, it is a studied inference of an American institute.
The PTI recently reported about a report by the Creative and Innovative Economy Centre (CIEC) of George Washington University Law School, wherein the centre has estimated that Indian film industry will grow by more than 15 per cent in the coming year. The reasons attributed are growing number of multiplexes and the availability of digital technology.
What this report did not elaborate, and which I specifically observed some three months ago, that this trend of growth is more evident in Bollywood but it equally, or more precisely more forcefully exist in the regional film industries. The statistical data of these scattered centres of film making does not come up at once and hence it is relegated to the unhidden corners of respective trade papers.
The Bollywood, that now produces Hindi films for mainly urban and overseas audience is considered worth 25, 000 Crores, according to Industry sources. Coming next to it is Kollywood or Tamil film industry which had a turnover of around 23, 155 Crores at the end of year 2005. This year’s data is yet to come by. The second biggest film industry in South India, that is Telugu film industry has a turnover to the tune of 23, 044 Crores.
Even the once near-dead or non-existent industries are gaining or regaining ground in the unprecedented ways. The Marathi film industry was staring at its death just five years ago. But the Shwaas changed it all. The film released in 2004 won a Golden Lotus Award from the President and that provided a much-needed impetus to the Maharashtrian producers. That’s why this year saw as many as 75 films in Marathi language were passed for the release by the Central Certification Board of India, called Censor Board, compared to the two or three on an average in the 90s.
The Bhojpuri films till recently remained in the shadow of the Hindi films. But as the Bollywood turn more and more urban; these films emerged strong with flavor of local themes and talent providing ingredients. Even Bollywood Superstar Amitabh Bachchan has thought it imperative to act in a Bhojpuri film, which was quite unthinkable in the past.
So given this trend, it is hardly surprising that world is anticipating a big growth from Bollywood. The question is, will it take cognizance of the growth of other film industries in India.

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