The British Film Institute (BFI) is showcasing and celebrating the diversity of Indian filmmaking and films about India from Bollywood to Tollywood throughout 2017. This special programme titled ‘India on Film’ will include film screenings, discussions on music and movies and many other special events.
One of those special events is a panel discussion on April 3rd, titled ‘What is Bollywood 2.0? Current Trends and New Directions’. Featuring noted film experts, this talk will take a look at current trends in Indian cinema as well as discuss what may be coming in the future. Not only that they will address how issues of race, class, gender, sexuality and politics are being portrayed and how they will be shown in the movies of ‘Bollywood 2.0’.
The panel includes host Ashanti Omkar, of the BBC Asian Network show that showcases the latest music, arts and entertainment from South Indian and Sri Lankan communities, Cary Rajinder Sawhney who is the Programming Director of the London Indian Film Festival and Programme Adviser of the BFI London Film Festival, academic Varsha Panjwani from London’s Boston University and film critic Mike McCahill whose reviews are printed on both The Guardian and The Telegraph.
I sat down with Ashanti to find out more and also to get her thoughts on the topics that will be covered during this fascinating discussion.
First, can you tell us more about India on Film at BFI?
The India On Film season at BFI is very diverse in what it is showcasing. It includes the Telugu film, SS Rajamouli’s Baahubali: The Conclusion, which gets a UK premiere. It sold out, incidentally, within a couple of days, after the tickets went on sale! Films like Mani Ratnam’s Bombay, and Rajiv Menon’s Kandudondain Kandukondain in Tamil, will also be screened. The season also includes rare archival material, as well as films that do not epitomise typical Bollywood, such as legal dramas, Court (which is a mixed language Indian film, predominantly in Marathi) and Shahid. Films like Queen, Kapoor And Sons, and the dark and gruesome Raman Raghav 2.0, by Anurag Kashyap will also be shown. This season also will host some of the London Indian Film Festival screenings, as is usual for the festival, at this historical venue, where very diverse independent films, as well as screen talks, will be seen by audiences.
As part of India on Film, you are hosting a very important and fascinating talk at BFI on Bollywood 2.0. What topics will this discussion cover?
An eminent panel has been put together, to discuss topics beyond Bollywood. Over the last few years, independent cinema has been making more waves, globally, from film festivals to multiplexes. In this talk, we will discuss this evolution, as well as discussing how LGBTQ+ topics are explored in Indian cinema, through to how India’s cinema is very diverse in terms of languages, and how different regions are hitting the worldwide box office, in a big way!
Do you see a difference in the kinds of stories Indian cinema tells? Not only Bollywood but also the other film industries in the country.
Absolutely. Over 1000 films come from India as a whole, and each part, has a different style of story telling, even if the “masala” movies have the same format of songs, fight sequences, and drama, with comedy. All over India, filmmakers are creating novel films that tell their own stories, in new ways. This is where the “beyond Bollywood” discussion becomes ever more current, and important, as Indian cinema is indeed diverse, and there is something for everyone.
Has Indian cinema changed in the types of stories they tell in the last few years?
In short, yes and no. Indian cinema has historically told strong stories. In the last few years, many independent filmmakers are taking serious topics, serving them in palatable ways. So yes, this is changing in some types of films. But in the more broad sense, in terms of the box office hits, the “masala” formulae seems to dominate. Glamourising stalking, for one, is a money-spinner. That needs to change, and too many stories glorify this. The same goes for the way women are portrayed. When a film does this in a strong way, it then gets censored, like what just happened with Begum Jaan. So it is a loaded question, that can be decided by which films the individual viewer watches.
What do you feel are some of the most important issues that have not had their voices in Bollywood?
There are quite a few issues I’m conscious of. One being very topical right now – racism in India, towards dark skin, and black people. And the other, from my observation, is LGBTQ+. While it has been showcased in the independent cinema of India, it is still a taboo, and can be very badly dealt with, in what is Bollywood, mainstream cinema that the masses consume. And finally, the case for disability – again, this has been covered in some films, but it can be very insensitively treated, in many, even to date. From blackening faces to jokes about the differently-abled, it would be good to see changes… And the feminine gaze. Indian cinema, as with global cinema, continues to fail the Bechdel test, gravely. Cinema can help social change, which was a part of many films from all over India. Social subjects were taken, and really examined, in cinema, but these days, very few are able to bring these to fore, as films that have less commercial appeal, simply don’t have the backing to get made. Kudos to the independent filmmakers, who take these risks, and bring these stories forward.
Especially in today’s political climate both in the UK and the US, how important is this year long event of Indian cinema at the BFI and the UK-India Year of Culture?
Gosh, that’s a loaded question. I remember a chat I had with Amitabh Bachchan, some years ago. What he said to me resonates deeply. I’ll paraphrase what he said. “Cinema bonds people in a way that very few other things can. Once one is in the cinema hall, and the lights go down, we are all the audience of what is on screen, seeing the vision of the director, come to life. We are all one, in the cinema hall, and through the duration of the film.” I do feel that the arts as a whole, have a way to melt away differences, and bring bonding, in a strong way. And with the UK-India year of culture, we are in the 70th year now. I remember the 60th year, and all the events that took place. They certainly served as a way to increase cultural awareness, and bond people together. This year looks like it will go the same way!
What do you hope this special panel discussion will do?
Well, I always believe that change always begins with awareness, and dialogue. I commend the BFI, for putting on this talk, as it gets the discussion going, and hopefully, it will be instrumental in bringing about a yet another new wave of Indian cinema, that Bollywood 2.0 has begun to showcase. One that embraces the diversity of India, as well as encompassing many topics that affect those of the global diaspora.
The Bollywood 2.0 panel event takes place at the BFI Reuben Library on Monday 03 April at 18:30. For tickets click here.
Also to find out more about BFI’s India on Film programme check out this link.
