FICCI Frames 2008: What kind of films click today? Nobody knows!

When eminent filmmakers like Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Shimit Amin, and Sudhir Mishra, who also formed the panel for the topic on ‘Rethinking Film Marketing and Distribution: Beyond the Box Office’, were confronted with the question as to what works best at the Box Office, they were almost synonymous in their opinion when they said that such a question would never have an answer for many years to come.

The thought was also seconded by noted filmmaker Ramesh Sippy, who was also the moderator for the session. Chopra was very clear right through the session that a filmmaker made a film because he had a strong belief in the concept of the film. “Nobody knows the damn thing!” he said. “Ramesh Sippy, who is here in the panel, had challenged Jaya Bhaduri on the sets of ‘Sholay’ on her acting, and people at that time thought he was a mad man. People weren’t convinced with what he was doing, and today everybody knows what ‘Sholay’ has done for the business of entertainment,” he pointed out.

History recalled

Chopra recalled the early days of ‘Munnabhai MBBS’ when it was being filmed. “People said ‘Munnabhai MBBS’ was a sure flop, and distributors too shied away initially. Looking at the promos of ‘Chak De’, a lot of people in the industry thought it was a documentary. In hindsight, many films have done a great job when people predicted their failure. Now looking at the data, one can argue that a particular genre of film works, and try to create something similar in the future. Believe me, it doesn’t work. If you have a strong belief about a concept, you really have to back your instincts and go for it.”

Filmmaking – Is it a self entertaining business?

According to Amin, filmmaking was about passion, about the interest in creating something new. “Filmmaking is a game that you want to keep playing - we as filmmakers love to entertain ourselves with this interest of ours. We are obsessed about films, and we make them not because it’s a good business proposition. Films are the worst business propositions I would say - there is no guarantee of what works and what does not,” he said.

Mishra was of the opinion that filmmaking was an act of arrogance. “For me, filmmakers/directors are arrogant – they tell stories which they believe in – not thinking in foresight. Thus, filmmaking is an act of arrogance backed by craft, talent and passion,” he maintained.

Mishra further noted, “There is a tendency among people in the business to define Indian audiences. We have some territories in India, and then we have the overseas market, a market which I think is the ‘Home Sickness Market.’ Indians abroad expect us to bring back the Indianess to them in the form of cinema.” Getting back to what works for today’s audience, Mishra said that “those who are able to send the audiences back home in a mood better than the time they arrived in the theatre, are the ones that can be said as good or successful directors.”

Director–Producer differences

Instances of films being abandoned due to differences between the producer and the director are very typical to the Indian film industry. Replying to one of the questions from the audience regarding this issue, Chopra said that never at a shooting stage could there be two directors. “As a producer, I will not interfere in the making of the film, rather I would only give my suggestions in the editing room once the shooting is done. I am a co-writer, and I do help my writers /directors in the scripting process of the film,” he said.

‘An ideal film’ -- Just another terminology

The word ‘ideal’ had no relevance to the film industry according to Sippy. “The word ideal has different meanings to different people. There is nothing called an ideal film. If people may consider what they think could be an ideal film, then they would always want to do something on the same lines, and that is where a formulaic approach in filmmaking comes in. Such films don’t work because at some point of time people would get fed up of repetition.”

Distributor’s role in filmmaking

Sippy stressed that a distributor was an important entity in the business, but at no cost could he interfere in the making of a film. “Distributors aren’t movie makers. As movie makers, we should not compromise on anything, whoever it be. If distributors want to invest in production, they very well can; and in fact, the industry is encouraging them in this regard,” he rearked.

Though the session was interspersed with virulent statements and inputs from the panel, the core question, ‘What works for the audience’, remained largely unanswered. ‘Nobody knows’ - was the stand taken by the eminent panel of filmmakers.