WHY CAN'T WE MAKE FILMS FOR ADULTS?
and/or www.mantra.com/jai
Agenda
The Pioneer
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Imran Khan may have the blessings of his uncle Aamir Khan, but he has
already made a mark of his own. The Delhi Belly actor talks to Rinku
Ghosh on his latest film and supporting new talent
Q - You have been promoting Delhi Belly along with generating
interest on your PIL on lowering the drinking age in Maharashtr from
25 to 21. Is it smart marketing to offset the irreverent tone of the
film or commitment to a cause?
A - Honestly, my campaign is long-term. And I haven't spoken about it
to the entertainment media during my Delhi Belly promotions. I have
tried to segregate issues and talked about the drinking age bar in
the mainstream media. Having said that let me clarify that the timing
was purely coincidental. Had the decision against lowering drinking
age not come a couple of weeks ago, you wouldn't have asked me this
question.
My decision wasn't instinctive. I met lawyers to understand if this
battle had a chance. They felt I could seek redress under the
Constitution.
Q - I think the drinking age bar always gets lost in the argument of
responsible drinking behaviour and whether lowering an acceptable age
limit is about encouraging alcoholism in the first place...
A - If you are giving responsibility to an adult, then give him a
free hand. Half-measures can only leave you confused. If you're
giving a person the right to vote and choose a partner at 21, then
that person should have the right to indulge in anything which is
legal in India.
Admitted, drinking can become a serious problem and I have seen my
friends go through it. But you are not solving it by taking the right
step. Legalise the drinking age at 21 and chances are that many young
people will not transgress limits in a spirit of rebellion and may
even sit down with their parents for a drink, shed their inhibitions
and become responsible members of an open society. A restrictive step
will have a negative fallout. First, everyone will make fake IDs in
Mumbai. Second, there will be bribery and bootlegging. Unknowingly,
we will be creating a sub-culture of corruption and crime.
Q - Why did you choose to take up the issue with women journalists?
A - My idea was to address a different section of the media and get
an alternative viewpoint. And indeed, I found myself in the middle of
a different line of questioning. One journalist asked me how I could
compare the right to drink with the rights to vote and marry.
The first could take you on the road to perdition, while the latter
would help you become a responsible member of society. I told them we
were not debating a moral issue, but an issue of legality. People
were just as likely to choose a bad representative or a partner. My
campaign is about the right to do things.
Q - Young actors like you are more adaptable to marketing strategies.
So much so that film marketing itself has become an idea independent
of what the film is about. What prompted you to stay in a one-room
flat in Delhi?
A - Film marketing is now like setting the pitch for an ad campaign.
Had it been as simple as putting up posters and running trailers, we
actors wouldn't have had to do anything. The idea was to prepare an
audience for our film, excite, involve and engage them. Delhi Belly
is for the adult audience, today's youth to be particular, who live
the life of the three young characters in the film, speak their
language, goof around and hang out together.
By putting myself in a one-room studio flat, I've immediately
connected with a section of the crowd among whom I want to create a
buzz, appear as one of their own tribe. There is a section of the
audience that will hate the film and they have already started
voicing their opinions. So we had applied for the A certificate from
the beginning and the promos were intended to warn people that this
is not a sit-down family film. If it's not intended for you, do not
watch the film. That's the clear cut message. We make cartoons for
kids, right? What's wrong, therefore, in making a fun film for
adults? Nobody has tried this approach of only focussing on the
target audience and warding off the others.
Q - Is this why the songs came before the promos of the film?
A - The song DK Bose has unintentionally become a tool of magical
marketing. In one stroke, it has managed to excite our target
audience and warn off others. The song is a great barometer; if you
like it, you'll like the film. If you don't, the film is not for you.
Normally, it takes a lot of time to prep and prime the audience. DK
Bose did that for us within a week. Everything after that is just a
garnish.
Q - Did you know about the songs from the drawing board stage?
A - Not at all, they were recorded separately. The first time I heard
DK Bose, I knew it would be a huge hit halfway into it. I also knew
that a large section of civil society would criticise it, saying it
was against Indian culture.
Q - Do you think the censor was mature enough to pass the song?
A - There have been far more questionable songs that have been
passed. There has been a fair number of Hindi songs with references
to oral sex. DK Bose is just a pun. It has generated a controversy as
it upholds youth culture, which is scary for those who don't get it.
Any song or film that touches on something cool, young and cutting-
edge scares people. Had DK Bose not been a hit, people wouldn't have
complained. The reason it is a hit is because an entire generation is
uttering the same lines and relating to the lyrics.
My grandparents were pretty suspicious of the song �Oh bloody, oh
blooda.� They weren't sure what it was but were sure it had a dirty
connotation.
Q - Why do you want to segregate the audience who are anyway
bombarded with cuss words in the public space? Remember there's free
speech on cyberspace. Let them watch your film and decide for
themselves. Like the voter, the Indian viewer is also mature.
A - As creative people, the audience is our judge. We are not in the
business of changing their opinion. We are not social crusaders, we
are entertainers. If somebody does not like the film, it's alright.
We cannot say his thoughts are wrong. But our intention is not to
cheat the audience. Had we held out a smokescreen, they would resent
it and hold it against us.
You have to be honest to your audience. We don't want people to come
with their children and then walk out angrily. Even those who are
curious should not come and criticise it. Our interest is to
entertain people who are interested in watching this film for its
sake. That's it.
Q - What is the genre of Delhi Belly? Seems a bit like
Tarantinoesque...
A - I am a big fan of Quentin Tarantino films (he flaunts his T-shirt
that has the poster of Death Proof emblazoned on it). I love his
crime capers where there is an undercurrent of humour and satire amid
all the action, violence and death. That's what happens in Delhi
Belly. Horrible things keep happening to these three guys. Vir (Das)
is beaten and his head is shaved. Kunal (Roy Kapoor) gets hit by a
toilet bowl and fractures his skull while one of my eyes is swollen
and my lip is cut. A roof falls over our head because of which our
head is covered with cement.
Q - Would you say Delhi Belly is your most satisfying film till date
because all your other films have mostly been breezy romantic
comedies?
A - Yes hands down, this is one film which I have done according to
my style and taste. It is close to my sensibilities.
http://dailypioneer.com/350161/Why-cant-we-make-films-for-adults.html
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Jai Maharaj, Jyotishi
Om Shanti
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