Barbie is a fashion doll created by an American businesswoman Ruth Handler, manufactured by American toy company Mattle. The brand Barbie Doll was launched in the market in 1959. Barbie brand includes a range of fashion dolls and accessories. It’s a common norm of gifting Barbie dolls to girls and boys. Barbie’s male counterpart is Ken. Barbie & Ken have been leading brands of fashion toy market for over six decades. Mattel has sold over a billion Barbie dolls, making it the company’s largest and most profitable line. The brand has expanded into a multimedia franchise since the late 1980s, including video games and computer animated films.

Parents buy Barbie dolls for their children because the benefits of doll-play encourage creativity and imagination, helps in developing social skills and communication skills, it enhances finer motor skills. Some parents have observed the doll-play has boosted their children’s confidence and the children become more expressive.

The doll has been portrayed with many careers; they are sold with sets of clothes and accessories that fit the career being portrayed. She is a doctor, an engineer, an architect, a teacher etc. According to Mattle, the doll has portrayed 200 careers so far. Barbie is a strong, independent woman who confronts societal expectations.

In 2023, Warner Bros. Pictures brought the movie ‘Barbie’ on screen, directed by Greta Gerwig, produced by Margot Robbie and her associates, on theme ‘Barbie suffers a crisis that leads her to question her world and existence’. Margot Robbie plays the lead role of Barbie in the movie which depicts breaking stereotypes surrounding the character of Barbie. She is independent and does not need a man in her life. She provides a fresh and empowering narrative.

Greta Gerwig’s direction gives insights about female existence which resonate with majority women. Actress, America Ferrera’s interview about the gendered expectations placed on women and the value of play is a significant truth. A gender stereotype is a widely held belief or generalisation about the behaviours and characteristics attributed to women and men. Many viewers complain that the movie is anti-men; this is misunderstanding of what the movie is trying to say and reveals far more about the viewer’s own philosophy on life and expectations for cinema than it does about Barbie itself. 

Females are often portrayed as being emotional, caring and in need of protection. Males are often characterised as being rational, career driven and strong. But gender stereotypes are fading away in today’s world because the society has realised gender stereotyping is an obstacle to the achieving equality between men and women. Apart from the personal and social consequences, for both women and men, it also has negative repercussions on a countries’ economic development and competitiveness. Supressing the woman, trying to fit them in their role perceived by the society, inhibits their natural talents and interests from developing. A nation develops more when women are given their space to advance, innovate, administer, and lead. 

Why is Barbie an inspiration? She is hardworking, Barbie has fought her way into so many careers, she’s constantly on the go. After six decades she is still learning new things, making new friends, and generally archiving as much as possible. She is happy,

Sometime in past Barbie spoke “I love shopping” and “Math class is tough.” The latter phrase received criticism from several female advocates accusing Mattel of preserving gender stereotype. In present Barbie says, “Always leave things better than you found them.” “Anything is possible.” “Barbie always represented the fact that a woman has choices.”

In the movie, the last scene captures Barbie (Margot Robbie) dressed in business casual attire as she is dropped off in front of an office building by Gloria (America Ferrera) for what seems to be a job interview. However, when Barbie reaches the reception area, she proudly declares, “I’m here to see my gynaecologist.” So, Barbie accepts her own body and soul, and is ready to experience other womanly desires.  

I watched a Malayalam Movie last week named ‘Ustad Hotel’ starring Dulquer Salman, Nithya Menon and Thilakan. The movie is directed by Anwar Rasheed, produced by Listin Stephen, and brilliantly written script by Anjali Menon. The movie can be categorized under the Comedy genre. The film appears simple but carries a profound message that life gives opportunities in numerous forms.  The movie was released in 2012. I love watching Malyalam movies because they usually carry meaningful message, they have extremely talented actors who give their best and are ready to experiment variation.  

The film tells the story of Faizal (Dulquer Salmaan), who is called Faizi in the movie, and the path he chooses to find his purpose of life. The story tells Faizi’s journey of life. Along the way we see his relationships with his four sisters, his father and most importantly with his grandfather who is the owner of the Ustad Hotel.

Faizi’s story starts before he is born when his father Abdul Razaq (Siddique) and mother Fareeda (Praveena) are expecting their first child. Abdul’s confidence that the baby will be a boy and to his disappointment when this child, and the next three babies turn out to be girls. Finally, Faizi is born, his ambitious father plans out his son’s life leaving no room for the son to think and decide his own path. Faizi’s mother dies after his birth; luckily Faizi has his four sisters who bring him up after their mother’s death. His sisters know that he is training to be a chef in Switzerland while his father thinks he is studying for an MBA. The sisters don’t like his European girlfriend and neither do they like his plans to settle in London. They plot to bring him back to India. 

No sooner does Faizi return to India, his father Abdul tells him about Faizi’s s marriage planned with bride Shahana (Nithya Menon). Faizi tells his father about his intention to work as a chef. Faizi’s furious father impounds his passport. Faizi goes in desperation to his grandfather Kareem (Thilakan) who runs a small beachside restaurant in Kozhikode. The movie’s star is Thilakan.

Kareem acts as a mentor to Faizi and teaches him not only how to cook his famous biriyani, but also how to care for a business, including his workers, and the general community around him. The obvious respect which Kareem receives from everyone from his staff and customers including the chef in the five-star hotel nearby, makes Faizi realise that there is more to his grandfather than just being a chef. Kareem teaches life lesson to this grandson through his actions; individuals are accountable for fulfilling their social duty, and the actions of an individual must benefit the society. Everyone sees faizi as Kareem’s grandson and that defines his place in a way that has never been so clear before.  

Anjali Menon has crafted the story very well showcasing the relationship between the grandfather and grandson which is beautifully developed as Kareem starts by making Faizi a general helper and gradually allows him to develop his cooking skills while ensuring he gains a more mature outlook on life. Anjali Menon’s script is layered and the performances from Dulquer Salman and Thilakan are fantastic.

The film deserves the many accolades and awards received, including its three National Film Awards in 2012. The story is simple but beautifully executed with stunning cinematography and excellent performances from the whole cast. It’s a real feast for the senses given that most of the film revolves around food and cooking. The film was a commercial success.

You must watch the movie to watch Thilkan and Dulquer’s super-duper acting on Disney + Hotstar

Recently I saw the critically acclaimed Malayalam film “The Great Indian Kitchen”, and the movie shook my senses hard. The term gender equality is used so elusively in India, while men talk about gender equality and gender sensitization in board rooms and on various social platforms do they really care for it? Charity really begins at home, if men think it does not apply to their homes then their speeches and a sentiment shown to others is only and only hypocrisy.  

Practically every day a woman works like machine cooking, washing clothes, cleaning utensils, raising kids, and entertaining the guests. She plays multiple roles of a wife, daughter-in-law, mother, and many other relational roles. If she is working, which is often added to her burden in metros, she multi tasks in her job as well.

In 2017, Malayalam film maker Jeo Baby, his wife Beena and their newborn found themselves spending more time than usual in their kitchen. The “frustration” of his wife at having to constantly cook and clean inspired a movie that has received rave reviews across the board, especially from women.  The characters in the movie are nameless; you see them in majority households in India. The theme of the movie examines the grind of house chores through the experiences of a nameless recently married woman played by Nimisha Sajayan. She plays the newly married wife whose physical and emotional labour is unnoticed by her family, especially her insensitive husband. Actor Suraj Venjaramoodu plays the husband. Women’s roles in Indian society are stereotyped; their aspirations and desires are clipped before they blossom. The discrimination against women is obvious. And, it seems mockery when Indians talk of gender equality and gender sensitization. 

When it came to the process of release of the film, director Jeo Baby had to face difficulties to get a break on the OTT Platform. During his few interviews, he talked about the film’s storyline and told the multiple challenges he had to face while bringing his film to the audience. He said that various leading OTT platforms like Amazon Prime Indian and Netflix rejected the film as it did not fall into their criteria list. On the other hand, some of the platforms did not even give a valid reason for their rejection. The popular Malyalam OTT platform NeeStream gave a nod and screened his film. The film finally got its well deserving space on the OTT platform after the outrage on social media expressed by lakhs and lakhs  of audience. The movie is finally available for the audience to watch on Amazon Prime Video. This is the nerve of some big OTT platforms have.

The movie is written and directed by Jeo Baby and the music is composed by Sooraj S. Kurup and Mathews Pulickan. 

In most households the woman is so inundated with the household chores that she is never allowed to open her mind to desires. She is also not allowed to have an opinion of her. In a way, the men in her family kill her desires, her mind, and her aspirations. Sad, but the elder women in the family join the men because they assume it is normal as they already have experienced it in their youth. Most women enable this repression without asking questions. They perform their womanly duties, day in and day out with discipline.

The movie is slow with its narration which Jeo Baby has done purposefully. It is done with an intention to allow men to finally witness what happens inside the great Indian kitchens. The way a lady slaves with the daily chores; chopping, cleaning, prepping, boiling, scrubbing, and seasoning the vegetables, cleaning utensils after meals, organizing the kitchen. And women have been doing this generation after generation; women slog and slave away their lives in service of unconstrained men. Every scene feels long because it is dense with storytelling. Narrative jolts are far and few in between. In The Great Indian Kitchen, we finally see, step-by-step, how a woman is stripped of her basic rights as a human being.

I conclude on a positive note…at least 4 of my male friends who are younger, well educated, established in life have confessed that they felt very apologetic towards their wives after watching the movie. I congratulate Jeo Baby for capturing the inner most and sensitive feelings of a woman fabulously.

The movie displays some deep human insights without being preachy or being conceited. There is subtleness for the sensitive viewer such as the fact that the hero at the start of the movie never rides his scooter past 40 kmph while at the end he is shown speeding away but there is no focus on the speedometer.

The movie is directed by Shrabani Deodhar and produced by Arjun Singgh Baran and Kartik Nishandar. Sachin Mote has written the dialogues and the screenplay. There are subtle comic timings in the movie; debutant Sonamm Nishandar plays the girl next door, who loves the hero, Swapnil Joshi. Sonamm has carried herself with ease and has played her role cheerfully. She has shown it perfectly what it is like being in love… When you are in love, you go all out to make the person feel good. A love-struck lady’s cheeks flush, her heart beats faster, she is dedicated to go all out to please the man she loves. She has portrayed all of these feelings brilliantly.

The director has trusted intelligence of the audience. The casting is brilliant with nuanced acting from the lead and support cast. Neena Kulkarni plays the obsessive mom to the perfection; Sai Deodhar is brilliant in the lead role, she has marvelously essayed her emotional breakdown scenes in the movie as the widowed single mother. She portrays the single mother’s longing to have her daughter with her, a mother trying to keep her daughter happy at any cost with lot of sensitivity.  Chandrakant Kulkarni fits well in his character as Swapnil Joshi’s uncle; he is also a brilliant director in Marathi films and theatre.

As a viewer what I liked is the director has showcased how stressful single parenting can become. Each day they take on the world at the same time trying to give their kids the best of life. Each day they think about ways to make life better, and each day they worry that something will happen and they will not be able to provide for their loved ones. Their primary focus is on their children and making each child’s life as good as possible. But the children have their own set of issues; this fact has been sensitively portrayed in the movie. Running a household, working and bringing up children alone are not a gag thing.

Swapnil Joshi is considered as a Superstar and Chocolate hero of Marathi film industry. He has donned an entirely new look for the movie. Talented Swapnil has shed his image of a typical lover boy. He has essayed the role and look of a boy next door from a typical middle class family very well. I suggest all to please watch this movie at the earliest.

]]> https://drvidyahattangadi.com/mogra-phulala-a-beautiful-marathi-movie/feed/ 0 https://drvidyahattangadi.com/is-vicky-kaushal-the-brightest-shining-star/ https://drvidyahattangadi.com/is-vicky-kaushal-the-brightest-shining-star/#respond Thu, 25 Oct 2018 01:01:29 +0000 http://drvidyahattangadi.com/?p=5273

I see a great actor whose name is Vicky Kaushal. This young actor has something unique in him; he literally lives the character he plays on screen. I have seen three of his movies so far: Masaan, Razi and Sanju. He mesmerizes the audience with his performance.

He plays Deepak Kumar, a Varanasi boy from the Dom community who works with his family in cremation ghats by burning funeral pyres. Deepak wants to rise above the restrictions of a casteist society. He studies civil engineering at a polytechnic college where he meets and falls in love with Shaalu Gupta (Shweta Tripathi) who is a high caste Hindu girl. Deepak and Shweta spend a lot of time getting to know each other.   Vicky Kaushal, delivers an outstanding performance as Deepak. He is a delight to watch in his solo scenes as well as shared scenes. What wondered me about him is that he shares a fantastic rapport with the added extras that play his friends. Massan is a story of five characters; but, Deepak’s story melts your heart. Vicky is so real and engaging that you feel like watching more of the Deepak-Shaalu story.

In Razi he honestly supports the protagonist of the movie Alia Bhat. People were apprehensive about Alia’s pairing opposite Vicky, the industry felt it was an unconventional pairing. He plays a Pakistani Major in the movie. Though he has few scenes in the movie, he has left a mark in each scene of his. He steals hearts of the audience as a Pakistani Major. In most part of the film, he is wearing the uniform and he looks striking. He had to portray few vulnerable scenes in the film: as a son, a brother and a husband. Though Alia Bhat plays the protagonist of the film as an Indian spy called Sehmat, Vicky dominates the hearts of the audience as Iqbal. He plays a gentleman who does not force himself on her after they are married, he gives time to Sehmat to get familiar with him, his likes and dislikes and his house. He takes care of her needs. Vicky has played every woman’s dream man. His role as Iqbal is charismatic.  It seems Kaushal thoroughly enjoyed playing Iqbal because the character had a lot of novelty in defying the stereotypical notion of a Pakistani soldier as a crude, cruel man. Iqbal is stern as an army man, but also has a soft heart for his Indian wife. He plays the contradiction simultaneously in each scene very convincingly.

For an actor, seeming real on the screen is a vital requirement. An actor’s job is to know the breadth of emotional leeway and reaching the depths of his own acting skills. Vicky Kaushal gets deep into the skin of the roles he plays. He shares the screen with his co-stars with ease. He emotes his characters nakedly, without any guard. It is very difficult to fake emotional nakedness. In Masaan as Deepak Kumar he churns himself inside out and squeezes out all pain felt by Deepak Kumar.

I have seen this clearly in all three movies of his: he knows how to listen. It’s intriguing to watch actors when they’re not speaking, but are listening and while emoting facial expressions. He plays Kamali in Sanju and in few scenes he is just listening to the protagonist played by Ranbir Kappor who is another good actor of today. I am not a Sanjay Dutt fan, but went to watch the movie for Ranbir Kapoor. I felt that Vicky Kaushal has supported unbeatably Ranbir Kapoor in the movie. He steals every scene with Ranbir playing his best friend as Kamli. In fact, just the friendship between Sanju and his best friend Kamli would make an interesting story in itself; both Ranbir and Vicky Kaushal leave you spellbound. Ranbir is an established actor, what enlightens is Vicky Kaushal’s strong support to the central character.

A good actor is well-honed, means he knows how to use his voice and body to serve whatever role he is playing. This doesn’t necessarily mean that he should have a great physique, blond look, six packs, is tall and handsome etc, etc. In all the three movies that I watched of Vicky Kaushal, he has used his body well. He knows how to move and talk in expressive ways. I didn’t see his voice and body fighting him or holding tension that’s inapt to his role. He surprises the audience with the ease he carries. He is truthful while playing multiple and contrasting roles. He is vocally and physically gifted. He is slowly and steadily climbing the charts. I see a shining star in him.

Imagine watching a movie, a TV Serial, an ad, a video without sound effects, it would be bland, lifeless and unnatural. Sound effects are an extension of the craft of a movie that allows filmmakers to tell their story in best possible way. Sound plays a huge and important part of that story. The sound effects are artificially created by the Foley artists. For example take the scene from Film Sholay – how would this scene impress you without the ambient sounds?

(Gabbar Singh in must watch clip of Sholay)

Foley artists recreate the realistic surrounding sounds that the film portrays. The props and sets of a film often do not react the same way acoustically as their real life counterparts. Foley sounds enhance the auditory experience of the movie. Foley can also be used to cover up unwanted sounds captured on the set of a movie during filming, such as overflying airplanes or passing traffic. The term “Foley” also means a place, such as Foley-stage or Foley-studio, where the Foley process takes place.

Foley is named after sound-effects artist Jack Foley. The Foley artist reproduces everyday sound effects that are added to film, video, and other media in post production to enhance audio quality. These sounds can be anything from the swishing of clothing, birds chirping, footsteps to squeaky doors and breaking glass. The best Foley art is so well integrated into a film that it goes unnoticed by the audience. The audience does not pay any attention to this small, yet vital aspect of film making.

Foley complements by replacing sound recorded on set at the time of the filming, known as field recording. The sound spaces of most films use a combination of both. Foley artists use creativity to make viewers believe that the sound effects are actually real. For example, fist-fighting scenes in an action movie are usually staged by the stunt actors and therefore do not have the actual sounds of blows landing. Crashes and explosions are often added or enhanced at the post-production stage. The desired effect is to add back to the original soundtrack the sounds that were intended to be excluded during recording. By excluding these sounds during field recording, and then adding them back into the soundtrack during post-production, the editors have complete control over how each noise sounds, its quality, and the relative volume. Foley effects add depth and realism to the audio quality for multimedia sources, and they simplify the synchronizing of sounds that would otherwise be monotonous or downright impossible to manage.

Foleys usually work at night after everyone else has finished work and left the recording studio. The scenes of a movie are played on a screen and the visuals are matched with the live sound effects recreated by Foley artists. The biggest challenge for a Foley is to actually make his work sound so natural that it seems realistic.

A character in the movie interacts with objects. For example, if a character picks something metallic up like a wrench or even a gun, the sound designer will have to add the sound of a hand touching metal. Using a cell phone or computer would also be accompanied by the sounds of digital beeps and clicks of buttons or keys being pressed. These might not be sounds that people register in reality, but not having them in a scene will make it very insipid.

(Most daring scene by Ajay Devgan in Raid)

The biggest fact is that these additional sounds are often very quiet and subtle and are generally used in quieter dialogue scenes. But in a scene as above from film Raid, look at the tempo and zest in Ajay Devgan’s acting. The banging of door of the big wooden gate and the dialogue between Ajay Devgan and gate keeper looks realistic because of the effective Foley sounds.

Karan Arjun Singh is one of Bollywood’s leading Foley artists. He worked for films such as Barfi, Talaash, Kahaani and Rockstar. In 2008, he opened Just Foley, a small, four-room studio in Mumbai’s Goregaon. Spread over a space of 800 square feet, his studio floor is patched together with different material – marble, wooden and marbonite – to recreate the sounds of footsteps on different surfaces.

Singh has been a Foley artist for more than 20 years and in this time the character of the job has changed. “Earlier, a Foley artist had to create sounds from scratch because these were not recorded during the shoot; now he has to amplify existing sounds because sync sound is becoming more popular, ” he says. “We have to match the sync sound perfectly. It has made our jobs more difficult. “

Similarly the Hollywood Foley artist Gary Hecker has won many awards for his work in “The Empire Strikes Back” and “Robin Hood”. He has worked on more than 200 movies throughout his career.

(Bollywood backstage Foley artists Quint Neon )

Location sound includes environmental details and capturing quality dialogue is the name of the game here. Ambient sound, if desired, should be captured in separate runs. Foley artists capture a selection of ambient sound for each location the movie is shot in.

A common, yet admittedly less glamorous, sound effect is footsteps. A footstep on its own might seem bland, but what if you want more than a recording of the inconsistent pitter-patter of feet faintly shuffling against a concrete floor? Your only options are to record Foley footsteps or to add and edit footsteps from an archive. Even stock footage is heavily edited in order to fit a role; by definition it becomes a sound effect. The Foley artists add footsteps sounds as per the gender, weight, age of the actor.

What are the usual gadgets found in a Foley studio? You will usually find gadgets such as think sticks and, dowel rods to produce excellent whooshing SFX, coconut shells, old chairs and stools are perfect for controlled creaking, heavy-duty staple guns serve for excellent gun noises, roll up a large phonebook for realistic body punches, twist and snap sticks of celery for convincing bone breaks, corn starch inside a leather pouch makes the sound of snow crunching, cut a coconut in half and line them with a soft material for a horse walking, ball up and walk over old audio tape for the sound of grass footsteps, an old car door or fender to produce metal and car crash sounds and a pair of cleaning gloves for the sound of realistic bird wings.

Action scenes need a lot of Foley effects, and there are several tricks used to keep scenes realistic. The horrific bone-crunching sound, for instance, comes when a cabbage leaf is twisted in front of a microphone. Cutting a watermelon and then squishing it with a foot-ruler gives the sound of flesh tearing away and blood spurting out. Thrashing fruit crates around creates the sound of breaking furniture.

A skilled Foley must also be accustomed to acting. It gives the additional edge for a Foley artist to get into the head of the character to produce the right kind of sound effect. Foley artists earn a well – a decent amount. There’s no set educational path for a Foley artist, but some come to the profession after a diploma or other qualification in audio production or recording arts. This gives you a thorough grounding in the technical aspects of recording sound, including knowledge of electronics and training in acoustics. It will also provide expertise in computer sound editing and other computer skills. One gets into the profession by networking with people in the profession. It’s a creative profession.

While watching Bahubali 2, I could not stop relating it to some good old Western movies such as Ben-Hur, The Last Emperor, The Lord of rings trilogy, Cleopatra etc. Bahubali part 1 & 2 is one of the greatest movies ever made in the history of Indian cinema; hats off to S.S. Rajamouli – the director of Bahubali. The climax opened with Rs 121 crore collections and continued its good run at the cinemas over the first weekend, netting Rs 320-325 crore over the first three days of release. It has literally flattened records of Bollywood Blockbusters.

Why is Bahubali a blockbuster?

The movie has all that takes to make a blockbuster: the expensive sets, high end marketing, high budget …it can be called one of the elevated costume dramas.  The movie has precisely well-placed graphics, crisp story lines edited at faster pace, catchy music and  well groomed star cast. In short the movie has everything to make it big, and it has taken the Indian Cinema to a next level. The movie has gained International Recognition. I feel the first part had better story line.

Writer-director S.S. Rajamouli is well known for his technical prowess with a unique storytelling style; the movie has visual flamboyance with equal amount of emotional depth. The $40 million that Baahubali’s producers spent on the 2-part blockbuster shows the greatest effects on the screen. Bahubali actually doubled that film’s schedule.

What makes Bahubali unique?

Here are a few facts and figures to describe the scale of the movie production:

• 1 full year of preproduction
• 25 artists who created 15,000 storyboard sketches
• 380 shooting days over 3 years
• 2,000 stuntmen
• Thousands of costumes, weapons and props

  The first part of Bahubali had ended with an appalling revelation that Bahubali’s most loyal servant, Kattappa was responsible for his death. The 2^nd part shows answer to the question why Kattappa killed Bahubali. The 2^nd part in better in terms of the female characters: they are stronger.  The major part of the movie is shot in Kannavam forest in Kannur district.

  In India the movie is made in Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam and Hindi, producer Sobhu Yarlagadda has left no stone unturned to spin box office magic in countries like Germany, France, Japan and China in respective languages besides in English and he is planning to release in 2500 screens across the world to establish a hard spinning box-office record.

  What is the cast of Bahubali?

  Actors of the movie Prabhas, Rana Dugabhatti, Anushka Shetty, Tamanna Bhatia, Sathyaraj, Nassar and Ramya Krishnan are all superb. Their screen presence is mighty. The movie is based on Hindu culture & tradition. Details of the cultural dimensions are not compromised in the storyline. The movie portrays the stronger side of women; that’s how it was in ancient India. Then, men and women had equal status. I term Bahubali 1 and 2 as classic example of a period movie. It shows that Indian movies have matured technologically; they are at par with Hollywood.

  

  Bahubali is example of best cinematography; Kudos to the cinematographer KK Senthil Kumar. It’s feast to eyes to watch the gorgeous ancient Indian architecture; beautiful monuments, houses, palaces, rathas, and the interiors of the palaces. The ancient Indian architecture had a dazzling class of its own.  The movie is an outcome of the director’s vision, the art director’s vision, costume designer’s work and ultimately the emotion that the artists have delivered. The cinematography has captured and presented the story in a grand scale without losing any essence in any frame. Another facet I appreciated most is the flow of sequenced orchestral music and its dynamics in the movie while narrating the story. This regional movie has changed the idea of movie making completely. The Telgu cinema has stood up and proclaimed boldly to the world a historical narrative like never before.

  If you have yet not watched Bahubali 2, please watch it immediately.

What is very important to make a movie successful? The script, the actors, the editing, cinematography, production, direction, music, animation……….can we really pinpoint on one of the elements? When considering the most important elements in a successful film, it is practically impossible to separate the actors from the script, to consider the screenwriter more important than the actors or to minimize the role of the director is absurd. The making of a movie is a creative process, reducing any of the processes diminishes the product and thwarts its existence. From a commercial angle, the producer and the financers are most important; because without them, the movie wouldn’t be rolled out.

India is one of the few countries in the world where Hollywood doesn’t reign supremacy. This is because India has many regional film industries besides its main industry Bollywood. Indian viewers demand movies with Indian sensibilities and cultural intricacies. The regional film industries are coming into increasing focus for a number of reasons: the Marathi and Malayalam film industries have been going through a revolution of sorts in recent years regarding the quality content and kinds of movies being made. They are gradually getting national and international recognitions. What is worth noting is regional films are known for their smaller budgets and are less frenzied about their star culture. I think this allows filmmakers to put the content and story at the center of the films and experiment with different kinds of movies.

The best example is 2016 blockbuster Marathi film ‘Sairat.’ It is the highest grossing Marathi movie ever. Based on a very sensitive matter of casteism, the story is based on innocent love affair. The movie has two new faces, no leading actors are roped in the movie, shot at simple locations. The movie emerged a strong winner in 2016, becoming the first in regional language to cross Rs 100 crore in box office collections. The revenue model was designed to link performance of the film to the remuneration of talent. Though this practice is increasingly adopted by Bollywood but was never heard of in regional cinema.

In 2015, Rajinikath-starrer Kabali, Bengali romantic film Praktan, Telugu film A Aa and Punjabi movie Sardaarji 2 are some names which have a big share in growing the share of regional films at the Indian box office from 15 per cent to 20 per cent. The movie content is credited as the main reason. It is also because regional cinema caters to the audience’s more immediate cultures, given that we are a nation rich in regional heritage with so many cultures and languages coexisting. Regional cinema has started witnessing prosperity significantly pan-India. It’s worth noting that movie like Sardar Gabbar Singh, Sairat, Kabali are given a huge release platform outside of the regional market and foreign markets.

Another interesting fact is that, while the regional film industry has been flourishing, big production houses, which have been investing in Bollywood films, seem to have taken an interest in regional films too. Eros, Viacom 18 and Zee are some names who are looking at good regional content. It is also a good sign that corporate houses are entering the film industry.

2016 saw some of the best Bollywood movies: Pink starring Amitabh Bachchan and some new faces, directed by Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury, the film is a slap in the face of those who question the way modern women choose to live and dress. This movie’s greatest strength is its strong stand against gender inequality and sexual violence.

Akshay Kumar-starrer Airlift was inspired by the heroic tale of an Indian businessman who helped rescue around 170,000 of his compatriots in the face of looming war crisis in the Middle East. And, Shah Rukh Khan-starrer Dear Zindagi is a story of a young girl who changes her perception about life after meeting a therapist. Movie Dear Zindagi takes viewers on a joyous tour of soul-searching.

Aamir Khan’s Christmas release ‘Dangal’ made a roaring profit at the box-office with collections of Rs 155.53 crore after a five-day run. It’s a biopic on Indian wrestler and Coach Mahavir Singh Phogat, ‘Dangal’ had opened with an astounding figure of over Rs 25 crore and made its way into the prestigious Rs 100-crore club within the first weekend. What’s interesting is that even if we take the film’s five-day collections into consideration, it is already the biggest hit of the year. The film again revolves around female protagonists.

After content, budgeting has been another factor in guaranteeing growth. Movies making is drastically changing. Of late, we see that both Bollywood and regional movie business is not particularly star-driven. This means the talent cost is fairly rationalized. Secondly, the newcomers give their best, they don’t throw tantrums. One doesn’t need the world’s greatest line producer; a good script, some unknown actors, no flashy location, you can make a good film in a small budget.

The business model of movie making business is technologically driven, both pre-production and post-production. The impact of technology is in new cameras that allow cinematographers to shoot in a higher definition, letting viewers take in more of the amazing work in set design. Shooting in digital is much easier because you can do more in less time. Multiple cameras can run on the same shot, so you always get the angle you want without having to waste time on retakes.

The process of distributing film also has gone digital. Distribution through YouTube has been the most common form of marketing for quite some time. Studios have released big-budget trailers. This has made the method for film to outlive its usefulness. Digital films can be stored on company servers, without taking up too much space. The costs to maintain this infrastructure are also lower than the costs to store and re-master film.

Going digital largely means foregoing the large containers of film that used to be synonymous with film making. It also means production companies complete their shoot schedules with less waste, keeping the entire project under or close to budget.  Adding visual effects to film was often a precise art, where the effect had to blend seamlessly with what was being shot. This was a painstaking process that editors no longer go through. Digital effects are created and added to the shot, this software also allows editors to work on entire sections of a film, easily piecing scenes together after the post production effects are added in. That includes audio, which now has a high definition digital file that ensures the audience will hear every word and action that they see.

The number of technology-based jobs has increased.  The post-production jobs are easier to offshore and move overseas than on-set roles. Yes technical jobs in the movie making are on rise: automated dialogue editors, aerial camera assistants, aerial photographers, lighting technicians, archivers, sound recording, art department assistants, armourers – there are few more.

One factor needs a special mention here. That is Luck. To release a movie at the right place, right time, with the right promotion requires luck factor with it.  A lot of famous actors, directors and producers believe in taking help of astrologers for seeking the right time to release their films. Success in the film industry is heavily dependent on luck.  We cannot reduce importance of actor’s, director’s talent, dedication and hard work, but it is pretty obvious that those things are not enough on their own.  There are number of extremely hard-working, talented people out there, who are yet to get the recognition they deserve.

‘Zindagi na milegi dobara’ is an excellent masterpiece movie directed by Zoya Akhtar and produced by Excel Entertainment.  The maxim of the movie is that each individual creates meaning of his/her life; we create our life day after day with our own actions and thoughts.  The movie is all about enjoying life and gratifying our dreams before we realize that we have lost chances to live them. In this movie Arjun (Hrithik Roshan) has the motto to work hard till 40 and then retire with a huge bank balance, and Laila (Katrina Kaif) makes him realize that that there’s no guarantee that he’d live up to the age of 40. From then on he takes the plunge of living life each day as if there is no tomorrow. The movie is about living for the moment, and never delaying doing things that will make us happy. The movie also is about bonding with friends. Great friendship is spirit of life.

Life is about moving forward. We cannot keep blaming other people for our failures. Recognize that life is a journey, not a destination. This saying is a cliché, but it’s also true: life is as much about how you get where you’re going as where you go. Living your life to the fullest is a process that will take your whole life to develop. Don’t get frustrated if it takes a little time to learn some things, or if you experience setbacks. This is a natural part of life.

When we make friends, we don’t go by their background. The movie Zindagi Na Milegi shows that Hritik Roshan – a successful investment banker, Abhay Deol – (a wealthy businessman) and Farhan Akhtar (a writer from a modest background) are buddies from childhood; they are least   not bothered about each other’s family backgrounds. These three friends have nothing in common, they have very contrasting personalities. Despite the differences, they are best of friends who want to be with each other. The film opens with Kabir (Abhay Deol) proposing to Natasha (Kalki Koechlin). Their families meet at the engagement party where Natasha learns that Kabir is planning a three-week bachelor road trip to Spain with his school friends Imran (Farhan Akhtar) and Arjun (Hrithik Roshan). Kabir is confused about his marriage plans, he is not sure whether he wants to marry Natasha, his confusion gets sorted out because of his buddies.

The movie shows that when it comes to friendship, family background, education, status, bank balance has nothing to do, the friendship blossoms despite all of this.

All too often, we spend a lot of time looking at what we don’t like about ourselves, what we’d like to change, we keep struggling to look different, to stand out. We spend a lot of time focusing on our past and future knowing jolly well that the present is most important. Katrina explains this to Hrithik.

Your core values are the beliefs that shape who you are. You are more likely to feel fulfilled and happy when you’re living in harmony with your value. Stand up for what you believe in and don’t let others push you around. It’s possible to do this and still be open to other people’s ideas, as they may surprise you.

The movie portrays how to get over our fears. We limit our lives when fear sets in. The movie gives a message to dare or die.  While we all have some unreasonable fears and do not want to face them. Our friends play a big role who can help us to get over them. In this movie the three friends decide on three adventure sports and dare the other two to do it. And they end up picking scuba diving, sky diving and Bull Run; all three have some deepest fears, which they get over with help of each other.  There were many first for all three actors. They felt jittery, out of their wits while shooting many scenes.

The movie is shot in picturesque virgin locations of Spain, yet the beauty of the picturesque country is used only as a substance and not as a gimmick in this road flick. The beauty of Spain fosters positive emotions in viewers. The movie talks about mindfulness. Learning to be aware of our feelings can help us live life to the fullest by keeping our focus on what is happening in the present moment. Mindfulness helps in avoiding judgment of our experiences; instead, it encourages to accept things just as they are.

As the title suggests you will never get this life again.

This film truly has set a milestone in Marathi film industry for terrific acting by Sachin Pilgaonkar, Subodh Bhave and rest of the team; Shankar Mahadevan’s acting debut needs a special mention here! The music is outstanding. The movie consists of great golden numbers and some new tracks effortlessly sung by Shankar Mahadevan, Rahul Deshpande, Arijit Singh and Mahesh Kale. The classical numbers consist of some great harkats and murkis.

The movie is based on the 45 years old, everlasting play of the same name, in which music was composed by Vasantrao Deshpande. It is now brought alive by Shankar Mahadevan and Sachin Pilgaonkar, who play Pandit Bhanushankar and Aftab Hussein Bareliwale, known as Khan Saheb. The story is set in the 1700s, when the British Raj was on the rise and Maratha power was on the decline. Set in the kingdom of Vishrampur, which is in the Deccan, the story is uniquely narrated by the Katyar (dagger), and her vision of the art forms in India.

Panditji appreciates Khan Saheb’s voice, his style of singing and helps him settle in Vishrampur. Panditji is a genuine artist who accepts Khansaheb’s aptitude and singing talent. He introduces Khan saheb in the court of Vishrampur King. The King of Vishrampur declares that the Royal Singer of the Court will live in a mansion and will own the coveted dagger. The King says that an artist has ego and does not like to be compared. The dagger will remind the artist to slash his ego. He also declares that the Royal Singer will be pardoned for one murder. Fourteen years Khan saheb loses competition against Panditaji and finally wins the competition viciously.

Shankar Mahadevan mesmerizes with his rendition of Pandit Jitendra Abhisheki’s magical compositions while Rahul Deshpande also fascinates with his classical harakats, tanas and murkis. This 45 year old drama is brought alive on the screen by Subodh Bhave’s directorial debut. This film restores the fact that music binds people across generations and boundaries. The storyline of this film revolves around two gharanas of music. Sachin’s Khansaheb wages a war of music against Shankar Mahadevan’s Pandit Bhanu Shankar Shastri. While Khansaheb represents the Mughal style Miraj gharana, Panditji belongs to the Hindu-Maharashtrian style gharana of Central India.

Subodh Bhave‘s Katyar Kaljat Ghusali succeeds in combining both music and the old drama while doing justice to the wide range of Indian classical music. The old natyasangeet is used as it is though new singers sing it while taking the story forward. This is extremely challenging. Bhave plays the role of Panditji’s disciple Sadashiv in the film. He has acted effortlessly. He is expressive and has shared screen space with Sachin Pilgaonkar’s par excellence acting. Mahadevan is vibrant as Panditji, growing on-screen throughout the film. A more self-effacing asset of the film is the relationship between Zarina played by Amruta Khanvilkar) and Uma played by Mrunmayee Deshpande, the daughters of the two singers, who also display commendable acting skill. The film’s main takeaway is Sachin Pilgaonkar’s performance; his chaste Urdu dialogues are worth listening to again and again. He has credited actress late Meena Kumari for his knowledge of Urdu. He effortlessly plays Khan Saheb with as much venom as love in his character. Khan Saheb believes in his art as Pilgaonkar does in his acting in the film.

Katyar Kaljat Ghusli literally means a dagger torn through the heart. All classical music lovers must watch this movie. It is a feast to ears; especially Marathi Natya Sangeet. The dialogues of the film are terrificly written by Prakash Kapadia.

Producers: Nitin Keni, Nikhil Sane
Director: Subodh Bhave
Writer: Purushottam Darwhekar
Screenplay, Dialogues: Prakash Kapadia
Music: Pt. Jitendra Abhisheki, Shankar Ehsaan Loy