Hindi Cinema: A Business
It is a common saying: ‘Cinema is the reflection of the society’
If this hypothesis is true then we, Indians have to cry to everything. From loss of love to son going to abroad, tears and melodrama should be the part of our life. We should sing songs and dance in every walk of life. We should all very be attractive in physical appearances.
To be honest,this fun ride is not a reality. We should understand popular cinema is a business, which is based on Indian ethos. We have the culture of plays in the form of ‘nautankis’ in the past. All ingredients of Indian cinema like songs, dance and emotions are taken from it.
If we see cinema not through the eyes of aesthete but as a businessman, there are few tenets in this industry also. The apothegm that ‘ Content is the king’ is overrated statement. Its all about marketing principles when money is concerned. The two major criteria before making the movie that you have to analyse are:
1. Budget: Big budgeted movies with all big stars and razzmatazz or small budget movies with less known stars and less fancy stuff
2. Kind of audience you are catering: naive small city people or suave and urbane metro- class.
A good small budget movie for metros should be based on Hollywood style cinema. The USP of this movie is exotic and tight bound script which is supported by talented actors. Experimental cinema and subtle emotions are the key factors for the success of the movie. ‘Bheja Fry’ and ‘ Oye LuckyLucky Oye!’ are the perfect examples for this genre. You have to market the ‘ difference’ or ‘Hatke- part’, you are portraying on screen.
But if this small budget movie is for small cities then music is the key factor for the success of the movie. This should contain montaged music videos that are connected through a simple story, probably a love story or erotic thriller. Variety in music is highly recommendatory, from soulful romantic to foot thumping item dance. It is preferred to market only songs as there is a considerable chunk of audience who will watch the movie if your songs and dances appeal to them to recover your money. Films like ‘Ashiqui’ and ‘Humse hai muquabala’ are the good examples of this category.
If we switch our attention to big budget movies then we should broaden our perspective in terms of audience. Stars do sell at box office but they are not the only factors essential to make your movie a hit. As the stakes are very high, extensive marketing is the requisite condition. Movie promotion should be ubiquitous at all sections of media, from internet to TV with covering brand promotions also. Buzz about the film is all needed to make the movie work in the first weekend to recover the expenses. The story is as important as cinematography, art direction and choreography.
More importance should be given on entertainment during story-telling than the actual content. There is a section of society who comes to watch cool gadgets, fancy cars, exotic locations and designer dresses. They will help you recover the cost of movie making within a week. ‘Kambakhat Ishq’ is a good example of a bad story presented with embellishment to sell the product. ‘Wanted’ is a perfect business plan. It has everything to entertain the common rural man, Salman as the hero, his much awaited action sequence, catchy songs, fast pace story and a bit of suspense at last.
Indian cinema has a different perspective to different people. You can call it, art of story telling through real cinema or to entertain the masses by visualizing the fairy land which provides escape from reality. You cannot undermine the power of cinema which is more than literature. Power to affect the thoughts of a common man, as he is more connected to it. People don’t understand Marx, but they understand Robin-hood. People don’t understand an essay criticizing Lord Macualay education system, but they can relate to ‘3 Idiots’. I really admire the directors Rajkumar Santoshi, Rajkumar Hirani, Rakesh Omprakash Mehra and Neeraj Pathak, who are champions in providing a message in popular cinema. They are giving an hope to reverse the antediluvian aphorism
I strongly believe that in future, Society could be a reflection of cinema if properly channelized.