As Cannes film festival becomes the flavour of Indian season, London-based writer and director/producer of several books and series on Indian cinema, including Channel 4’s Movie Mahal, looks at where the phenomenon called Bollywood currently stands in the West
By Nasreen Munni Kabir
In the past decade there has been a seachange in the western world in the overall awareness and recognition of the Hindi popular film. In the early 2000s, you would not be mistaken if you believed that Bollywood was on the threshold of entering the global cultural scene. The all-singing and all-dancing Bollywood film gave out all the signs of having arrived. And undeniably that rather demeaning and annoying label “Bollywood” also helped enormously in capturing the Western imagination. They loved the name and found it amusing and intriguing. At one point, Bollywood events were organised in one European city after another, drawing enthusiastic crowds.
The interest peaked in 2002 when Lagaan was nominated for an Oscar in the best foreign film category and Cannes screened Devdas with Shah Rukh Khan, Madhuri Dixit and Aishwarya Rai grabbing the attention of the paparazzi on the red carpet. Madame Tussaud’s also unveiled the wax figure of Amitabh Bachchan, the first Indian star to stand among world celebrities.Countless TV commercials were made in Bollywood style and Hindi film music played in many London clubs. In a recent interview, Andrew Lloyd Webber spoke of how he came to be fascinated with Bollywood: “It all began thus. About a decade ago on Saturday mornings, Channel 4 showed a series on Hindi films called Movie Mahal. I was cooking lunch when a song lured me away from my stoves.” His fascination with this vibrant cinematic form, and particularly film music, finally led him to produce the musical Bombay Dreams for the London stage, and to introduce AR Rahman to the West.
By the mid 2000s, film distributors in the UK, who had never previously organised press screenings, started to invite British film critics to review new releases, assuming this would encourage a new audience. As a result, we saw a number of newspaper and magazine articles and listings of Indian films. This had rarely happened before. But it wasn’t long before the Indian distributors realised that instead of the British press reviews working for the film, they worked against it. A one-line review on CheeniKum says it all: “I was told the title meant ‘less sugar’, but this film has miles of treacle.” This comment was not very far removed from a 1957 review of Mother India, which described the film as: “With mother we go through mud, blood and flood.” This kind of reaction,whether sixty years ago or in the recent past, was hardly going to persuade a wider or “whiter” audience that the films had something to offer them. So today in 2012, press screenings in London are more rare. Decidedly, the idea of Bollywood has been embraced, but not the films. Another indicator, which proves the films had not caught on, was the lack of mainstream film distributors in London or New York wanting to release the films in the West in the way they release a Hollywood film, or a world cinema film.
Yet we know there are many entertaining and satisfying Hindi films, so why did the increased awareness fail to achieve a bigger share of the global box-office? Perhaps the answer lies in the make-up of the cinema-going audiences, divisible into three main categories: the mass audience, the niche, and the cult. The mass audience in the West likes English-language Hollywood films (and some British) with stars that already have a fan base and that tell stories set in a world that is culturally familiar. Most films must have a length of around hundred minutes and only longer length action or costume dramas appeal to this audience.
Smaller in number, the niche audience is open to world cinema, but even these are usually not longer than two hours. They are happy to see films in a foreign language with subtitles, and with actors they may be unfamiliar with, but whose performing style is quiet and underplayed. World cinema viewers are often fans of the works of a director who is known to them, and is usually someone very favourably reviewed by international film critics.Romantic musicals and high-strung dramas do not interest them. Above all, the movie must tell a story rooted in the cultural, political and social reality of the country where it was made and have great cinematic quality. In this context, Satyajit Ray is the only Indian filmmaker who has made a long term impact in the West and has aspecial place for a niche audience worldwide. He is rightfully adored and his 1955 film PatherPanchali features regularly in top films’ lists chosen by international film critics. His cinema is admired as much as the cinemas of Japan, Iran or Korea. Films by Mira Nair, Shekhar Kapur and Deepa Mehta also have a significant following in the West, but are not always seen as entirely financed by India. Co-productions have always been attempted. Even as early as in 1925, we had the Indo-British silent film Light of Asia with Himansu Rai and Seeta Devi. But the success of these co-productions has been uneven.
The true fans of Bollywood and Hong Kong’s action movies fall into the last category of cult audiences. The Bollywood fans do not represent big numbers at the box-office, but they are fanatical lovers of the genre. Here the tremendous popularity of Shah Rukh Khan (especially in Germany and France), adoring fans of Aishwarya Rai, and a handful of films like Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, have played a big part in winning these passionate followers.
People are people and they have the same likes and dislikes no matter where they live.So it is not absurd to suggest the viewing patterns in India follow much the same rules as in the West — the big commercial cinemas of the North and South attract the mass audience as Hollywood does, and they do so for the same reasons: language, star appeal, familiar plot lines, and film length, and added to this, is a popular soundtrack. The niche audience in India similarly prefers the art-house film that offers a more realistic narrative that touches on social issues, and prefers a steering away from lip-synch songs. Finally the cult audience are the fans of regional cinema and international auteur films and who view these on DVDs, as few subtitled regional films or world cinema are ever distributed in India.
The flurry of interest that began in the early 2000s has died down substantially. That said, the huge wave of interest has shown a genuine fascination for the phenomenon of Bollywood. The fact that Indian cinema defined entertainment for millions of Asians around the world, especially in the UK, US and Canada, a community that was becoming more affluent and powerful, came as a big surprise. Added to that was the discovery that the people in Africa, the Middle East, parts of Russia and China also had a great appetite for this cinema. Indian cinema’s fan base and the popularity of its stars ignited a keen interest, as many previously believed that only Hollywood produced that many films every year, and were unique in enjoying a global audience.
An Indian film may still not play alongside a big Hollywood movie, but recognition of Indian cinema is an established fact.Today it is unlikely that you would meet someone in the West who has never heard of it. If you asked a London cabbie or a New York journalist, they would instantly say: “Indian cinema? You mean Bollywood?” Despite Indian cinema’s long history, a blank expression or smile would have greeted your question some years ago. That situation has completely changed.
The question always asked is whether Hindi cinema really needs a wider audience. Hindi films are made primarily for the domestic market and are also greatly appreciated by non-resident Indians who live in every corner of the world and whose loyalty is steadfast. The most significant and powerful thing about Indian cinema is the role it continues to play for millions beyond India’s borders. It is without doubt the most important thread that ties millions to the idea of a homeland, to beloved stars, to understanding Hindi, and through its songs forging a deeply emotional connect. How many cinemas in the world can claim to have as powerful an influence?