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November 26, 2006
Three things South Indian cinema can teach Bollywood
Indian cinema is a lot more diverse than audiences outside India might give it credit for. The Indian movies many outsiders have heard of are primarily Hindi language movies (yeah, those supposedly 'musical' ones). Although the industry that produces these movies is based in Bombay (the B in Bollywood), that city's major spoken language is not Hindi. There are several smaller film industries based in cities all over India that make movies in other languages.
The biggest film industries outside Bollywood are in South India, where Telugu, Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam are spoken. Movies in the first two languages have a much broader base and appeal than movies in the latter two languages. Nevertheless, there is significant cross-pollination of ideas, actors and movie directors among movies in the South Indian languages, which leads to a reasonable degree of thematic overlap.
Bollywood movies, as popular as they are, tend to be centered around only a handful of sociocultural themes (I'll note though that since the release of Dil Chahta Hai in 2001, a greater number of Bollywood movies have tried to introduce new and provocative themes). Add a few predictable elements and you have a formula that satisfies the world's single largest film market. Many aspects of this formula have been emulated in Indian regional cinema to varying levels of success; indeed, regional actors generally gain in respect if they can also pull off a successful Bollywood movie. South Indian language movies come nowhere close to Bollywood movies in the size of their audience or box office collections. Still, they have their own take on some aspects of moviemaking, which I wish more Bollywood movies would use to reinvent themselves.
- Irony and humor. Blockbuster Hindi movies these days are generally short on irony or anything more than token attempts at humor. Perhaps the director fears that these elements are but peripheral to the main plot of the movie, or worse, that they might undermine his message. Humor and irony might undermine the message of the movie only if it involves the major characters. South Indian movies, especially those in Tamil, manage to present enough humor and irony without detracting from the main message of the movie. They use characters that have nothing whatsoever to do with the main plot of the movie; they exist solely to provide comic relief and temporary distractions from the movie's plot development. Indeed, actors like Senthil and Goundamani have made entire careers playing such roles. Free of any involvement with the plot, their minor roles often succeed in delivering insightful social commentary while being funny. What's in it for the audience? A temporary respite from a concentrated shot of plot development, a few laughs and a chance to relate as human beings to the events on the screen. Contrast this random, and quite frankly bizarre, approach to humor with that of most Bollywood blockbusters (Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna comes to mind), where any comic relief is provided by major or supporting characters and is constrained somewhat by plot elements. Not all movies must have irony or humor to be successful; however, those irony-free movies that deal solely with plot and character issues without commenting on wider social issues take themselves too seriously in enforcing patriarchy, social hierarchy and notions of propriety. Conveniently enough, this brings me to my second point.
- Treatment of human and social issues. Indian cinema has always had somewhat of an escapist streak; it caters to audiences that want to rise above the concerns that constrain them ethically, morally or materially. Starting in the 90s, several movies (especially song sequences) have been shot outside India just to give a taste of foreign lands to the local audience. Influential actors like Shahrukh Khan and Saif Ali Khan have starred in movies that depict unbelievably well-dressed characters living opulent lifestyles inaccessible to the vast majority of the Indian population. Although this escapism provides some distractions from ordinary life in India, which can often be difficult, before long it becomes hard to identify with the troubles of the characters or to see their situation as relevant in any way to the viewer's own condition. South Indian cinema is much more likely to feature relevant human and social issues (the emotional complications of surrogate motherhood, the mysteries of multiple personality disorders, the slow deterioration of someone affected by a terminal disease) in its themes. Most of these movies, notably those from the Malayalam film industry, don't do well at the box office because they are not sufficiently escapist. They receive plenty of critical acclaim as serious cinema because they expand the repertoire of collectivist and widely relevant issues that can be depicted on screen. Contrast this to Bollywood's much narrower idea of pushing the envelope: questioning whether premarital cohabitation or extramarital affairs may be appropriate in some circumstances.
- Musical inventiveness. South Indian cinema has seen immensely talented musical directors like A. R. Rahman or Ilayaraja, who have been highly receptive to experimenting with new styles of musical composition. Ilayaraja had a good bit of training in Western classical music, which he used to great effect in his work. A. R. Rahman's inventive genius has earned him a commission for the musical version of the Lord of the Rings. South Indian music directors are also more likely to give new singers a break, judging from all the fresh talent that keeps getting featured in South Indian movies. In fact, singers like Sadhana Sargam have fared much better singing in South Indian movies even though they aren't native to South India. Bollywood music has historically been largely predictable and features standard-issue love songs and dance beats that have been perennial favorites.
Bollywood is an incredibly successful commercial machine without a doubt. Despite the sheer number of movies it produces though, it is still a major event if an Indian movie is a serious contender for international honors in film. More than anything else, this points to a lack of diversity, arising in turn from a lack of maturity. I have no delusions about movies being high art; moneymaking continues to be their primary goal in every major film industry in the world. Still, if Bollywood could occasionally deviate from tried and tested themes and learn a thing or two from the South Indian movie industry, it will surely result in greater variety and wider appeal.
Posted by Vishy at November 26, 2006 03:59 PM