Bollywood mein kuchh-kuchh hua

By Ravish Mishra & Ajay Chaturvedi

The Mumbai-based Hindi film industry has finally found a new formula for success, and about time. The new-found success formula is reflected in the just-released film "Kuch Kuch Hota Hai".

As if the rising
viewership of television soaps and the devastating impact of video piracy were not enough, the average hindi-film buff seemed to have got bored with the earlier formulae films resulting in jarring flops at the box office. The viewers appeared no longer interested in violence and sex, intrigue and politician-bashing, and not at all in angry-middle-aged men.

The resilient industry, quick to latch on to a trend and milk it to the last drop, saw success in the genre represented by the "Hum Aapke Hain Kaun" and the "Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge". No violence, no sex, but youthful romance, tradition, marriage ceremonies and family entertainment, riding on hummable lyrics and catchy tunes. These are the new ingredients for success identified in Bollywood.

Riding successfully on this wave of romance have been "Pyar to Hona Hi Tha" (starring Ajay Devgan and Kajol, who, the grapevine says, may soon be husband-and-wife in real life too) and "Kuch Kuch Hota Hai" (starring Shahrukh Khan, Kajol and Rani Mukherjee) as also "Jab Pyaar Kisise Hota Hai" (starring Salman Khan and Twinkle Khanna).

"Dil to Pagal Hai" starring Shahukh Khan, Madhuri Dixit and Karishma Kapoor, was a runaway success again in the same mould of youthful romance, catchy tunes and devoid of sex and violence, but did not have marriage sequences, ceremonies and songs.

It is interesting to
note that besides these light romances featuring the innocence of youth, "Border" is among the few films that have been a success at the box office over the last few years. Of course, "Border", directed by J P Dutta, had the heady mix of patriotism featuring the ultimate sacrifice and the Indo-Pak war angle. The fight sequences in it were not make-believe, but historical, so-to-say.

So absolute has been the audience rejection of the formula of yesteryears that history is being rewritten. Amitabh Bachhan, who became a cult-figure as the angry-young-man in the 1980s and rode the silver screen since then like a Colossus, has also been forced to switch roles. No longer does he rely on fist-and-fury. In "Bade Mian, Chhote Mian", a comedy, Amitabh's comic character is in stark contrast to his known image. What is more, this star of yesteryears, seems to be using Govinda as a crutch to remain standing tall. There are those who say that Govinda has outshone Amitabh in this David Dhawan film.

It is this new formulae that has brought some happy tidings to Bollywood after a really disheartening period when nothing seemed to be going right for the cash-strapped film industry.

Flops after flops had buffeted Bollywood for months even in case of movies featuring big names with big budgets. The film-goers seemed to have rejected the good old masala Hindi films which used to be a sure shot success in the halcyon days. The flops that have in recent months sent shivers down many-a-spine in Bollywood included, the big-budget "Jeans" starring Aishwarya Rai, and "Mrityudata" featuring the greying Amitabh Bachhan, as also "Duplicate" starring Shahrukh Khan and Juhi Chawla, to mention just a few.

So besotted is the Hindi film industry with this new-found formula that even the icon of action films, Sunil Shetty, whose profile is nothing to write home about but whose physique is ideal for fight-sequences, is going in for a romantic film co-starring Priya Gill of "Tere Mere Sapne"-fame, complete with romantic song sequences and theme in keeping with the present trend.

This is not to say that this genre holds complete sway. Besides "Border", the talk of the year has been "Satya", a complete departure from the above-mentioned trend, yet a money-spinning as well as critically acclaimed film.

To the credit of "Satya", directed by Ram Gopal Varma, virtually its entire cast, barring Urmila Matondkar, consisted of fresh faces from the theatre-world. The film realistically portrays the operations of the underworld and its links with the powers-that-be. Violence is palpable in the movie, which brought star-status virtually overnight to Manoj Vajpayee (who plays the role of mafia don Bhikhu Mhatre).

The business - oriented film-makers in Mumbai are going into overdrive in making the romantic films with catchy numbers backed by smart music marketing. But, there can be too much of a good thing. The success of "Border" and "Satya" indicates that no one formula can guarantee success.

The fact that programmes appearing on various television channels, with mind-boggling viewership, are largely film-based has meant that the film stars do not retain their novelty-value for long. Therefore, the constant need for new faces. One common thread in the recent box office successes has been the presence of new faces and new directors.

The fate of "Kuch Kuch Hota Hai" and "Bade Mian, Chote Mian" would indicate in the coming days whether the present trend in Bollywood will continue or the industry will have to wrack its brains to find yet another winning formula to keep the audiences hooked.

---