The article was originally written for PFC on Feb 12, 2009 by Magik. Click here.
Disclaimer: This is an optimist filmi’s work of fiction. No offense meant to anybody, living, dead or tripping!
In the recent past 2 movies that moved me beyond my imagination were Luck By Chance & Dev.D. While I considered LBC to be a crash course to the insides of the Indian Film Industry, Dev.D became a crash course into taming / trying to tame my own demons. I’m thankful to the makers of both these films for the good they did to me. This post is definitely not a review, its just a musing of what happens to Indian Cinema post Dev.D. Ibb ke howega aggey yaar…
Something within tells me that Dev.D is a landmark in Indian cinema. I am not getting into the nitty gritty of how & why it worked for me, as plenty has already been spoken about. Why Dev.D is a landmark, for me, is that it has stripped the Indian hero off the ‘dhai kilo ka haath‘ & the heroine off the ‘shiffon saree‘. It has strengthened the role of the song in the narrative & the bar has been raised for using songs in a film. Ainwi songs use karna is so uncool oye!
UTV Spotboy, that made Dev.D happen, might just get rid of the ’spotboy’ tag & make all their films with equal passion, creativity, trust & foresight. This will certainly inspire more production houses to join the ‘equal opportunity’ bandwagon & make way for better cinema. Dev.D has made ‘pushing the envelope’ so fashionable that anything that doesn’t push, will be looked down upon. Thankfully, the films lined up for 2009 seem to be pushing real hard.
As a writer myself, I now wonder, what kind of love stories would I write. Thanks to Dev.D, the holier-than-thou image of love, lust & relationships in general has been taken away. So now when you wanna fuck, you ask for a fuck (without the as***ix). The goddamn asterix, will be out of business. Will there be a Dev.D AD era & Dev.D BC era? Will I ever write a scene “cut to hero - serenading heroine in swiss alps”. I hope not. I dare not.
Had been insisting a buddy of mine (small-town-girl prototype), to watch DevD. Following is the transcript (corny but insightful) of the chat we had:
Me: hey, did u see dev.d
She: nope mene suna dev d bakvas movie hain
me: kis kambakht ne kaha, it has got 5 star rating in times of india
she: yeh mene suna achchi nahi hain, rotlu movie hain, anyways main dvd par dekh lungi
me: kya achcha nahi hai, kisne bola
she: yaar i haven’t watch main jab dekhungi tab bataungi, adult movie hain totaly
me: so, kaun adult nahi hai
she: i am a kid :)
me: ho gaya kalyan
me: did u see trailer of dev.d?
she: haan, mujhe dekhna zroor hain, i will see
me: trailer dekh ke dar gayi bachchi
she: haan mujhe sharam agayi
me: ??? kis baat pe
she: main jab dekhungi jab mummy papa nahi honge he he he
This chat helped me decipher the typical Indian psyche. First reject, without any reasoning. Then experience it in the closet & finally fantasise, without owning up to it & bothering to get to the bottom of the issue & form a healthy opinion. But yes, sooner or later, in the open or behind closed doors, people will come to terms with the present state of the yuva of the country. And I am glad it happened.
And then, the man himself, Anurag Kashyap, among the ‘zafar khans’ & ‘romy rollys’ of Indian cinema, got lucky by chance. What happens to him? Will the industry embrace him with open arms or will it wait for him to falter. In an industry where equations change every Friday, it’s hard to tell. But yes, he took the path less taken & has left behind a trail that all aspirants can try & follow. Here’s wishing him all the best for Gulaal & all others that follow. Viva cinema!
Dev.D: Ibb ke howega aggey yaar…
The first impression
The buzz around this movie was tremendous, thanks mainly to PFC. The various people involved in making the movie or the ones who had seen the rushes were ecstatic. Usually such a hype can be a bit of let down when the actual product arrives. Vee sms'd me from the movie hall about how awesome the movie was. He is a real spoilsport when it comes to movies, and was wanting to give me all the details :) But I sushed him and did the right thing to do under the circumstances, watch the movie. From the first scene to the last, the movie gripped me. The songs transported me to another plane, I haven't heard such soulful songs in quite a while. Mahie Gill, Abhay Deol and Kalki Koechlin were all so believable. It was like a mirror was being held up to the youth of the Day Present. The ambiance of the movie was perfect. In fact it was like a jigsaw puzzle that was all in place, story, dialogue, acting, music, even choreography. I don't think I have seen anything quite as scintillating as the 'Pardesi' song.
Our blog HAD to be Red. If I were an ace designer Dev D would be written in neon lights in a fitting tribute to Anurag Kashyap!