The Hindu Business Line : Catch India at the Cannes

The Cannes Film Festival celebrates the completion this year of 60 years of some of the best in world cinema. From European, Chinese, Korean, Romanian cinema to Austrian, German, French, Russian and American cinema, the festival has a smattering representation of most countries around the world, and the glaringly obvious absence of Indian cinema.

This year, however, things are to change. As part of the Les Cinemas du Monde segment, seven Indian films are all set to share the limelight. To commemorate the 60th year of Indian Independence, along with 60 years of the festival, two days have been set aside for Indian cinema, with the honour of inaugurating the Les Cinema segment. The excitement in India has reached an unprecedented high, despite the fact that we aren't part of the competition segment at the festival.

A curious mix

In collaboration with the Directorate of Film Festivals in Delhi, Cannes has selected the following films to be screened on May 18 and 19: G. Vasanta Balan's Veyil (Tamil), Dr Bijukumar's Saira (Malayalam), Mridul Toolsidass and Vinay Subramaniam's Missed Call (Hindi/English), Bhavna Talwar's Dharm, Mani Ratnam's Guru (Hindi), Raj Kumar Hirani's Lage Raho Munna Bhai (Hindi) and Rituparno Ghosh's Dosar (Bengali). The selection of films, though in no way a comprehensive representation of Indian cinema in its entirety, at least has the presence of regional cinema in the repertoire (as against a purely Bollywood depiction).

A curious mix of veteran filmmakers like Mani Ratnam, Rituparno Ghosh and Vidhu Vinod Chopra (as producer of Lage Raho), and complete newcomers like Vasanta Balan, Dr Bijukumar, Bhavna, and Mridul and Vinay, the films chosen seem to reflect as wide a variety as possible, and at the same time, disappoint at the seemingly random nature of the films chosen. While it is a given that two days will not suffice to showcase myriad shades of Indian cinema, as graciously accepted by the Festival organisers too, it is also a given that for the international audience, Indian cinema will unwittingly be classified and defined based on the seven films that are to be showcased.

And considering the recent curiosity Indian films are garnering in the West, thanks to the success of Mira Nair's The Namesake, the inimitable Aishwarya Rai factor, and the recent Shilpa Shetty factor, and the Shah Rukh Khan and Karan Johar phenomenon, Indian cinema has a novelty effect abroad — the songs and dance, the extravagance in colours, costumes and set design, the carefully choreographed stunts (a la Jackie Chan) and the three-hour-long drama that unfolds, cinema takes on a whole new dimension.

So there are expectations; Indian cinema was just waiting to happen on the international market, and this is probably the first big step in that direction.

A quick peek

Vasanta Balan's Veyil is a sensitive story about an individual's life gone terribly wrong — beginning with a cruel admonition with unforeseen repercussions, a flourishing career as a projector operator at a local theatre, a poignant love story with a tragic end, to the return of the prodigal son, his efforts at reinstating his position in the family, and a professional feud ending in death. Veyil is a story about acceptance, forgiveness and repentance, set against the backdrop of a very real rural India. Produced by renowned filmmaker Shankar of Anniyan and now Sivaji fame, Veyil is a mature film, a commendable effort by the first-time director.

Dr Bijukumar's Saira, on the other hand, brings to light the relationship between father and daughter — the former a celebrated ghazal singer, etched to perfection by veteran actor Nedumudi Venu, and the latter an ambitious TV journalist, the title role played by actor Navya Nair, who eventually disappears in the pursuit of "truth". With terrorism as a perceptible protagonist in the film, Saira traces the lives of the father-daughter duo, which at the heart of it is simply about unconditional love in the face of adversities.

Both Veyil and Saira are products of a mature imagination, equally beguiling as a Guru or a Dosar. While Guru, which was both critically acclaimed and commercially a success, is the age-old rags-to-riches story (and we all know it was "inspired" from Dhirubai Ambani's life), with Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya (who is quickly becoming the international face of Indian cinema), Dosar is a typical Rituparno film, a sensitive portrayal of relationships, with Konkana Sen in the lead, captured in the eternal beauty of black-and-white film. Rituparno handles intimate scenes with élan.

And, of course, not to forget Lage Raho, an endearing film about "Gandhigiri", with all the right elements of comedy, emotions, drama and melodrama (a classic Indian `masala' film). A huge commercial success with a strong social message, one is hardly surprised that it found its rightful place at the festival.

With such brilliant cinematic representations, Missed Call is a complete misfit. An amateurish film from the word go, Missed Call is an experiment of sorts in cinema, but it remains just that. That is not to say that the film does not have its moments.

Co-directors Mridul and Vinay have given this film a completely fresh outlook, to the oft-experimented theme of early adulthood angst. Ambition versus family pressure, love versus passion, and dreams versus reality, Missed Call is the story of the protagonist's aspiration of becoming a filmmaker. A very urban setting, with urban issues and problems, Missed Call perhaps represents only that aspect; its selection remains a puzzle.

Dharm, a directorial debut by journalist-turned-filmmaker Bhavana Talwar, which is set to premier at the festival, makes one wonder what the selectors had in mind to premier a debutante's film, which claims to be the first Indian film shot in the HD (High Definition) format. What happened to PC Sreeram's Vaanam Vasappadum, also shot in the HD format three years ago?

Cannes will also witness two films by UTV premiere at the venue — Ashutosh Gowatrikar's Jodha Akbar and Vivek Agnihotri's Goal.

The Road Ahead

Attention to Indian cinema has long been overdue, considering we are one of the world's largest producers of cinema. It is often forgotten, ignored or dissected as cinema that cannot compete with world standards, that is unoriginal, that is superficial and unintelligent. In fact, the only Indian film that has found its place in the competition at Cannes this year is Raka Dutta's short film, Chinese Whispers, under the student short film category.

So what is it that our cinema lacks? Not technology, we are at par with most filmmakers in the world. Not talent. We have some of the best actors and technicians as well. Story perhaps? With India's history, mythology, culture and tradition, there can never be a dearth for that (though our filmmakers continue to ape the West). Manpower? In India, that's not even in contention. Budgets? After Karan Johar and Sanjay Leela Bhansali films, that logic is also immaterial.

The problem is perhaps belief and conviction in our own cinema. We have a style, a system, a method that is unique to us... . if only we believed in it.