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Tales of terror...
SUNIL PATEL
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Why are films on terrorism bombing at the B.O.?
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While young and fun-loving audiences reject such films for the bleak picture they paint, critics rue that more often than not, the topic is not dealt with the seriousness it deserves.
Missing feel-good factor? A scene from “Tahaan”
Terror trails are not doing much for producers even if the speed with which such films are being churned out says otherwise. Recently, Ramgopal Varma’s scare fare “Phoonk” and Nishikant Kamat’s “Mumbai Meri Jaan” hit the theatres on the same day. “Phoonk” was a horror film, not everyone’s cup of tea. But “Mumbai Meri Jaan” was a critically acclaimed film. The audiences, however, preferred supernatural fear to real-life horror and opted for “Phoonk”.
“Mumbai Meri Jaan” earned just 35-40 per cent business in the opening weekend, even as “Phoonk” touched a high of 90 per cent. In the first week itself “Mumbai Meri Jaan” slipped to 25 per cent. The fate of other new releases on terrorism — “Hijack”, “A Wednesday”, “Tahaan” and “Chamku” — wasn’t much better.
Too close to the bone
A scene from “A Wednesday”
So what is it that makes films on terrorism fall flat, even though the winds of extremism and militancy are sweeping through the country? Perhaps the fact that they cut too close to the bone.
“People go to watch to see everything end well. They don’t want go to watch depressing films that are part and parcel of films based on terrorism. There has to be some feel-good factor that every movie-watcher wants to relate to. That’s why films on terrorism are not doing well,” feels trade analyst Atul Sharma.
But “Maan Gaye Mughal-e-Azam” was a masala comedy with terrorism interwoven into the plot. It even ended on a happy note but failed to find a happily-ever-after with the audience. Historically too, the topic hasn’t been a hot favourite with the audience, bar a few films that have been box office successes. Among the hits are “Maachis”, “Black Friday”, “Mission Kashmir”, “Sarfarosh”, “Roja”, “Dil Se” and “Fanaa”, among others. The list of misses is longer: “Fiza”, “Mission Istanbul”, “Kabul Express”, “Jo Bole So Nihaal”, “Pukar”, “Dus”, “Yahaan”, “December 16”, “Ab Tumhare Hawale Watan Saathiyon” and many more.
Right treatment
While young and fun-loving audiences reject such films for the bleak picture they paint, critics rue that more often than not, the topic is not dealt with the seriousness it deserves. Remember that people like Madhur Bhandarkar have made dark films on other topics and have found box office success. When terror struck on 9/11, many films on the attacks and even militancy surfaced from Hollywood, many found an audience in India too — “United 93”, “Munich” to “Flightplan” and even “Die Another Day”. So the audience for these films does exist. So what it is that the makers of hit terror-based films have done right?
Anurag Kashyap, the director of “Black Friday”, did his homework thoroughly before he plunged into the film on the 1993 serial blasts. The film was based on a book written by S Hussain Zaidi. And the impeccable research showed in Kashyap’s handling of the sensitive topic. “The research made the film possible. I couldn’t have done it without the book,” he says. Kashyap followed up three years of research done by Zaidi with his own homework of one year. He even visited courts and attended hearings to build his close-to-life characters. Black Friday is easily one of the finest Bollywood films on the topic.
Then there’s Mani Ratnam, the man whose middle name is success and critical acclaim. When “Roja” hit the screens, it was supposed to be a love story. What it actually ended up becoming famous for was its poignant portrayal of a kidnapped scientist’s tryst with separatist rebels of Kashmir. “Dil Se”, another one of his offerings, saw life through the eyes of a man in love with a suicide bomber. That film too is recognised as an iconic film.
Sympatheic echoes
Sensitive portrayal: A scene from “Maachis”.
Perhaps the success of Gulzar’s “Maachis” lay in its very simple treatment of a complex subject. The story of a young Sikh man who seeks solace in insurgency after bureaucratic forces wreak havoc with his life found a sympathetic nerve in everyone who watched the film.
Shonali Bose, who directed “Amu” based on the anti-Sikh riots after the murder of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, feels terrorism films have a role to play in sending a strong message to the society. “They tell you about the cause and effect of violence and how it can change lives and people,” she says.
Aamir Khan, who played a terror fighter in “Sarfarosh” and a terrorist in “Fanaa”, feels such movies should continue to be made. “Such films can change viewpoints of the youth and even the audiences,” he says.
Maybe, but can they find takers? Going by the recent ticket sales of terrorism flicks, doesn’t look like it.
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