What is the name of the film sent by India as the official entry for the 95th Oscar Awards to be held next year? Keep thinking, till then let’s move ahead. Do you know that director Rajamouli’s film ‘RRR’ has not been officially sent by India for Oscars? Among the films not sent are director Vivek Agnihotri’s ‘The Kashmir Files’ and Ayan Mukherjee’s directorial ‘Brahmastra’. If the names of these three films are raising your curiosity, then it means that what I am going to say next is probably on the right track.
In fact, if the tag of Superhit is not affixed, then it is not easily known when most of the Indian films sent for Oscar Awards came to the theaters and when they went out. For example, Ranveer Singh and Alia Bhatt’s film ‘Gully Boy’, which was sent for the 92nd Oscar three years ago, was in the news because this film starring famous stars was a huge commercial success (Rs 238 crore). Similarly, Aamir Khan’s film ‘Lagaan’ (2001) was sent for the 74th Oscar, which was a hit at the box office and was also successful in getting a nomination.
‘Lagaan’ was the third successful film to get nominated for the main competition after Mehboob Khan directed ‘Mother India’ (1957) for the 30th Oscar and Mira Nair’s ‘Salaam Bombay’ (1988) for the 61st. Since then, till today it is 21 years, no film has been able to reach here. There are many more examples, which will be mentioned further.
annual debate pageant
By the way, the name of the film officially selected for the Oscars to be held in the year 2023 is ‘Last Film Show’. This is a film made in Gujarati language, which is also being called as ‘Chello Show’ or Chello Cinema. The film was released in theaters a few weeks after being selected for the Oscars in September, which can only be called a formality. Soon it will also be available on OTT. Meanwhile, RRR has further intensified the annual Oscar debate by presenting its claim as an independent film in 14 different categories.
The annual debate is because every year we find a new reason for not getting an Oscar. Sometimes the choice of film is not right, and sometimes lobbying is not done properly. Sometimes a film is accused of nepotism and sometimes its making is blamed. Bhavna Talwar, director of Pankaj Kapur starrer film ‘Dharm’ (2007), had reached the court when Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s film ‘Eklavya: The Royal Guard’, released in 2007, was sent for the 80th Oscar. So the 2012 film ‘Barfi’ directed by Anurag Basu and starring Ranbir Kapoor-Priyanka Chopra, which was sent for the 85th Oscar, was directly accused of scene copying in the name of inspiration. This time many things have come to light regarding Chhello cinema also. The path to getting an Oscar has been a long story of obstacles, allegations and faults.
Why shy away from Kasauti?
Although there was very little debate on how honestly we were making films. The budget of a film of Rs 300 or Rs 500 crore remains in discussion. There is discussion on VFX, in how many countries it was shot and a lot of news is made on the production value. But where do our films stand on the test of authenticity, authenticity and credibility regarding their subject, historical facts or contemporary depiction? Often many filmmakers talk about getting inspiration or inspiration from some Indian or foreign film, but it is not possible to assess how much justice they are able to do to the original work. Or what is the use of such facts and information after all the research, which are later found to be false or cannot be presented properly.
Two examples are presented. The first is director James Cameron’s film ‘Titanic’ (1997), which was successful in getting nominations in 14 categories in the 70th Oscars and had 11 Oscars in its name. Following the worldwide success, in 2012 Neil deGrasse Tyson, an American astrophysicist, drew Cameron’s attention to a scene in the film. It was reported that the starfield depicted in the climax scene in which Rose (Kate Winslet) is looking at the stars in the sky does not appear to correspond to the latitude and longitude of 1912. Tyson’s claim was based on the study of the composition of celestial bodies and their physical characteristics, on which Cameron asked for a correction and asked Tyson to send the correct structure so that the scene could be corrected.
However, we have not yet reached that era of film making where such detail and depth of work has been done in any historical importance or science fiction film. For a science fiction film, it may not be necessary for the director to be a scientist, but scientific thinking and such an approach can definitely be adopted.
Well, another example is ‘RRR’ which has received worldwide fame and appreciation along with being a stupendous commercial success of Rs 1200 crore. From American actor Danny DeVito to filmmakers like James Gunn, The Russo Brothers, Scott Derrickson, Larry Karaczewski, Jackson Lenzing, Daniel Kwan, Igor Wright, etc., the film has been praised. Obviously, the spirits of its makers are very high regarding the Oscars and it is expected that this film can be successful in getting nomination in the VFX category. RRR has also filed nominations in Best Picture, Director, Original Screenplay, Supporting Actor, Supporting Actress, Best Actor, Cinematography, Makeup, Costume etc.
authenticity and difficulties
Inspired by real characters and events, the story of ‘RRR’ is completely fictional, set in the British Raj and 1920’s Delhi and its surrounding areas. If nothing has been said as claimed in the story, then nothing has been shown as claimed either. That is, in this historical film of Rajamouli, the depiction of Chandni Chowk, Old Delhi, the banks of Yamuna and the old iron bridge is the same as Karan Johar had depicted Chandni Chowk in his film ‘Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham’ (2001).
Although even Karan Johar did not claim authenticity, should Rajamouli also get the same exemption as Johar? ‘Lagaan’, which was successful in getting nomination in the Oscar race, was also a fictional story, which was inspired by the film ‘Naya Daur’ (1957) directed by BR Chopra and starring Dilip Kumar and Vyjayanthimala. Its background is 1893, the British cantonment is shown. No claims have been made in this as far as date is concerned, but despite being fictional, one does not feel that authenticity towards anything is necessary, whereas the background of ‘RRR’ is 30 years ahead of this. What can be expected from today’s filmmakers and their research team is that they will spare no effort in gathering information on things of importance and history of the last hundred years.
In fact, now we have reached such an era of film making, where the scope for digesting anything in the name of imagination and cinematic freedom is decreasing. A disclaimer at the Oscars or similar forums that states that this fictional story has no connection with any person living or dead or may be a mere coincidence is no longer important. Because when filmmakers say that it is a period drama, it means that they have done something special different from others. The other person also checks it on the same basis, the points of which indicate the scope of truth and accuracy. After tasting different types of content from all over the world, our audience is no longer the same as before. Therefore, ‘RRR’ has knocked for Oscar as an independent, but it does not look different from the entries sent officially in the past.
tradition of disputes
By the way, apart from ‘RRR’ and ‘The Kashmir Files’, ‘Chello Show’ has got success by defeating 13 films including ‘Brahmastra’, ‘Badhaai Do’, ‘Rocketry: The Nambi Effect’, ‘Anek’, ‘Jhund’, ‘Aparajito’, ‘Sthalam’, ‘Iravin Nijhal’. However, similarities have also been revealed regarding Chello cinema with the 1988 Italian film, Cinema Paradiso. Also, this film was made by a foreign banner, which was later bought by an Indian banner and this film had also applied for Oscar last year.
It is said that Zoya Akhtar directed ‘Gully Boy’ also had to face allegations of similarity with the film ‘8 Mile’ (2002). Probably for this reason the Oscar nomination of the film was also cancelled. By the way, many filmmakers believe that there is no fixed criteria for getting an Oscar nomination. A similar sentiment is seen here too while choosing films for Oscars. The reason for choosing Chhello cinema is its way of storytelling and its power to grab the world’s attention.
Actually, this is a reason which suits almost every successful film selected. But we should see what were the reasons behind not choosing Vicky Kaushal’s film last year. Because many times the story of the films that were not selected attracts more attention than the films that were selected. The nomination of ‘Sardar Udham’ (2021) directed by Shoojit Sircar was removed from the Oscar sending list because the film depicts excessive hatred of Indians towards the British. And in this era of globalization it is not right to harbor hatred.
After knowing this, some people might be curious to see what is meant by extreme hatred. And those who have seen this film may have read these lines again and again wondering whether the depiction of extreme hatred is really an atrocity towards the British. Let’s imagine for a moment that if ‘RRR’ had to be chosen this year, wouldn’t the issue of extreme hatred arise again? Because both the films depict the atrocities of British rule. Or there is also a provision for some kind of special exemption in the name of fictional story. Or is it to be believed that Lagaan was chosen, both here and there, because the level of hatred towards the British was at its lowest?
If seen in this way, every year a new story will be seen associated with some film or the other. The logic that remains missing is what were the real reasons behind choosing a particular film. Were factors like its truthfulness, reliability and accuracy also included? It is worth noting that due to lack of suitable films, no film was sent for Oscar in the year 2003, whereas for a long time, the highest number of films have been made here in the whole world.
How do we know that this decision was right then, when that year there were some films which could have been sent, including ‘Pinjar’ directed by Dr Chandra Prakash Dwivedi, Raju Hirani’s ‘Munnabhai MBBS’, ‘Kal Ho Na Ho’, ‘Koi Mil Gaya’, ‘Bagban’, ‘LOC: Kargil’. And even if we assume that the decision was right then, then on what basis was ‘Eklavya: The Royal Guard’ selected in 2007, which was neither commercially successful nor appreciated by the critics.
This is not the final truth
In the end, it seems important to mention a scene from the film ‘Ardh Satya’ (1983) directed by Govind Nihalani and starring Om Puri. In one scene, the hero of the film, Inspector Anant Velankar (Om Puri), sitting in front of the heroine Jyotsna (Smita Patil), starts reading a poem named Ardh Satya with great eagerness. As he progresses, his emotions begin to show new signs on his face. By the end of the poem, he is in front of Jyotsna like a helpless soul, who has both consciousness and fear.
In another scene, Anant wants to tell Jyotsna about his job and how he feels there. He wants to present before her the truth of his life, which is filled with suffocation, regrets and despair. While doing this, instead of his frustration flowing from his eyes, they just turn red and remain there. He is unable to make eye contact with Jyotsna sitting on the chair in front of him. While sliding her hand on the table, Jyotsna wants to touch it, but extends her hand and moves it back. The film shows what kind of atmosphere there would have been regarding policing in that era of 80’s.
Many things can be said about ‘Ardh Satya’ as a document, which may not have been made with the intention that the film would be preserved in the future in view of its accuracy and truthfulness towards the subject. In the director’s mind, a policeman and the semi-truth around his image might have been at the center. Therefore, for more than one reason, this film is still talked about even today. What a strange coincidence that after Satyen Bose’s 1980 film ‘Payal Ki Jhankar’ was sent for the 53rd Oscar, no film was sent for competition for three consecutive years. After this gap, ‘Saaransh’ directed by Mahesh Bhatt in 1984 was sent for the 57th Oscar. Like Ardh Satya, there would probably be many more films which could have been sent to the Oscars, but?