Bollywood versus Regional Film Industry

SSR case had brought to the fore the hypocrisy and hollowness of the most glitzy and decorated industry. It is this industry that is revered by many, so many youngsters in the country crave for coveted roles in this industry without knowing what bedevils this industry. It is a quagmire of nepotism, drugs, and prostitution. This industry which claims to have enthralled millions and billions of people for many years has actually fooled the gullible people who are blinded by the glitz, razzmatazz, and larger than life image which is portrayed on screen without any an iota of semblance to what the reality is.

SSR suicide or abetment of suicide case has shaken our conscience and has woken up the entire country to the dark side of this industry which is full of drug addicts who can stoop to any level to show themselves superior to all others.

Bollywood movies depict people in larger than lives avatar. Bollywood movies have huge budgets and massive following not only in India but also abroad.  Any commoner whose story or name appears on the silver screen becomes an instant celebrity for they get so unparalleled fame and adulation but the moot point does they really deserve all our love and appreciation which is showered upon them.  Do they really deserve all the stardom which they are showered with or is it just too much fame which is given to them I am not suggesting that everything is bad in Bollywood, it has seen various ebbs and flows and these are the eras of Bollywood

Golden Age (late 1940s–1960s)

The period from the late 1940s to the early 1960s, after India’s independence, is regarded by film historians as the Golden Age of Hindi cinema. Some of the most critically acclaimed Hindi films of all time were produced during this time. Examples include Pyaasa (1957) and Kaagaz Ke Phool (1959), Awaara (1951) and Shree 420 (1955), Aan (1952). The films explored social themes, primarily dealing with working-class life in India (particularly urban life) in the first two examples. Awaara presented the city as both nightmare and dream, and Pyaasa critiqued the unreality of urban life. Cinema in those times relied mainly on the brilliance of actors and directors.

Classic Bollywood (1970s–1980s)

Juxtapose the Bollywood film industry with the regional film industries of Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Telugu, Malayalam the movies that they produce might not have big budgets but they definitely have much more substance to offer than the sheer nudity and show off which Bollywood dishes to its viewers.

By 1970, Hindi cinema was thematically stagnant and dominated by musical romance films. The arrival of screenwriting duo Salim–Javed (Salim Khan and Javed Akhtar) was a paradigm shift, revitalizing the industry. They began the genre of gritty, violent, Bombay underworld crime films early in the decade with films such as Zanjeer (1973) and Deewaar (1975). Salim-Javed reinterpreted the rural themes of Mehboob Khan‘s Mother India (1957) and Dilip Kumar‘s Gunga Jumna (1961) in a contemporary urban context, reflecting the socio-economic and socio-political climate of 1970s India and channeling mass discontent, disillusionment and the unprecedented growth of slums with anti-establishment themes and those involving urban poverty, corruption and crime. Their “angry young man”, personified by Amitabh Bachchan, reinterpreted Dilip Kumar’s performance in Gunga Jumna in a contemporary urban context and anguished urban poor.

New Bollywood (1990s–present)

It is the new Bollywood that has created all the problems and issues for people in the country and the SSR case has brought this to the limelight. Three Khans have made this industry their fiefdom from the 1990s, they resort to bullying, nepotism, and muscle power from the underworld to further their cause in Bollywood. They have made it their dominion wherein outsiders are proscribed from entering. This new Bollywood stinks of nepotism and drugs.

Funding for Bollywood films often comes from private distributors and a few large studios. Although Indian banks and financial institutions had been forbidden from lending to film studios, the ban has been lifted. Finances are not regulated; some funding comes from illegitimate sources such as the Mumbai underworld, which is known to influence several prominent film personalities.

All this needs to be cleaned, for all those who are advocating that Bollywood depicts Indian culture it is all a sham and doesn’t reflect the true picture of Indian society and as a nation nor it describes our tenets. New Bollywood has spoiled our culture not exhibhited our culture.

It is better to watch other regional films that don’t patronize savagery, nudity, and are closer to reality. They might not have the big-budget, the cinematographic of the Bollywood films but they certainly have a better storyline and more substance than what Bollywood has to offer. 

Films like Bahubali, Jatt & Juliet, Carry on Jatta have proved time and again that regional film industries have a better reach than Bollywood and have done an excellent job in showcasing the Indian talent and culture than what these cheap Bollywood movies have done. I have developed fascination for watching Punjabi movies and some of these movies are really worth watching.

With the advent of people like Anurag Kashyap and egotistical Khans  Bollywood has actually dished out third-grade movies that lack either storyline and use filthy language which is not liked by anyone.

Let us all boycott Bollywood and give the regional film industries a fillip,  then only will these cheap people with very little talent and who only rely on their family’s connection will end.

Ultimately it is the viewers who decide the fate of the film, not the ones promoting them.

Disclaimer: The views offered are personal and not to malign anyone. All information taken from what is freely available on the internet.

Image credits : Google Images