The hindi film industry has experienced lows in the past. Too many films have been released. Almost each one of them has flopped. A lot of money has gone down the drain. Pessimistic and apprehensive, producers have lost faith in their ability to make viable commercial decisions. Actors, directors and everyone else who make the industry work have waited for the darkness to end. That has happened inevitably, resurrecting hope that drives the industry.
Since the beginning of 2013, Bollywood has been going through a peculiar phase. To insist that the industry has been witnessing a slump would be grossly unfair. But the strange fact is that it has failed to produce a single film that has made a serious impact on the masses by doing what a Dabangg — or even Rowdy Rathore — managed to do not very long ago.
No great films
Filmmakers have been trying everything they possibly can. Comedies, thrillers, horror films, romances: All kinds of films have been released.
While a few of them have earned what was spent and more, not a single film has managed to generate palpable excitement among the Hindi film devotees. Race 2 has been the only big commercial success, but it has been compared rather unfavourably with Race , its predecessor.
Those who had gone to see the film have come back home not particularly disappointed, but not ecstatic either.
At the time of writing this column, Aashiqui 2 has been declared a hit, silencing those who had insisted that the film would crash at the boxoffice.
Aashiqui 2 may not epitomise a well- made romance, but those who made a conscious decision of watching it have liked the film. The acting is decent, while some of the songs are quite hummable. Good enough for a weekend watch, provided you don’t go to the cinema hall with unrealistically high expectations.
Aashiqui 2 , in other words, is the Jolly LLB for a different audience. Neither can it be watched a second time — not if one has a choice — but a one- time visit to the theatre won’t give the viewer a sleepless night later.
Two films have been impressive: Special 26 , a heist film, and Kai Po Che!, which was based on the Chetan Bhagat novel The 3 Mistakes of My Life . In Special 26 , Akshay Kumar, who had given a blockbuster with Rowdy Rathore , a lesser Dabangg of sorts, stepped out of his comfort zone. Surprising his hardcore fans, he chose to play just one of the characters whose character is as impactful than those essayed by accomplished actors like Manoj Bajpai and Anupam Kher.
Limited reach
Although Kai Po Che! was mostly discussed because of its actors, it was one of those films in which the director Abhishek Kapoor played the most important role. That both these films had limited reach was their biggest weakness.
Hence, they enjoyed limited success and failed to make a large scale impact.
The Prabhu Deva starrer ABCD: Any Body Can Dance turned out to be an interesting success story. In an industry where few dare to think of making a dance film these days, director- choreographer Remo D’Souza’s attempt to push the envelope and actually make one deserves applause. The film, which had a wafer- thin storyline, was directed at those who are passionate about dancing.
Such viewers gravitated to the theatres, enjoyed what they saw and contributed to the revenue. As has been the case with practically every release this year, this film failed to reach those beyond its target audience. With a less bad story and better publicity, it might have.
Many reports are insisting that Chashme Baddoor — the remake of Chashme Buddoor — is the film with which director David Dhawan has made a comeback. Has he? The film may not have collapsed at the box- office. However, viewers who have watched the original have been hugely disappointed.
Dhawan is the Rohit Shetty of yesteryear. So, criticism wouldn’t have affected him one bit. However, one needs to remember that the film didn’t need to earn 100 crores to break even and make profits. Because of its small budget, even 40 crores has been good enough. That being the case, anybody who views this as the comeback vehicle of the master of bigbudget entertainers must take a fresh look at Dhawan’s track record.
A lot was expected from Matru Ki Bijlee Ka Mandola directed by Vishal Bhardwaj, the director of films like Kaminey, Omkara and Maqbool . The film’s confusing title gave rise to a zillion discussions and speculations. But after it hit the marquee, all these voices fell silent. Saheb, Biwi Aur Gangster Returns and Inkaar were well- made films whose impact was confined to a small percentage of viewership. The former did make some money, but the latter fared quite badly.
No miracles
At this moment, Shootout at Wadala and Bombay Talkies are waiting for the verdict of the masses. Guesswork isn’t a bright idea, although it does seem that Yamla Pagla Deewana 2 and Yeh Jawani Hai Deewani are going to be the first two major successes the Hindi film industry needs.
Both the film have X factors going for them. YPD 2 has the Deol family and the support of a successful prequel, while YJHD appears to have a sizzling chemistry between Ranbir Kapoor and Deepika Padukone. Till then, Bollywood is unlikely to perform any major miracle.
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