While participating in a panel discussion on “India and its films” at the fourth Doha Tribeca Film Festival yesterday, prominent Indian film personalities Anupam Kher and Ashutosh Gowariker spoke on many issues concerning the industry in India. The session was anchored by Rajeev Masand, entertainment editor with CNN IBN, an English television channel broadcast from India.
Stressing that Bollywood considered itself self-sufficient in a way to meet its own requirements, both within India and outside, Gowariker said the industry needs to closely watch the developments in the British and American film world, before taking further steps.
“Most English and other foreign language films are of less than two-hour duration. However, one cannot forget that there are also such exceptions as The Lord of Rings, which lasted almost three hours and 40 minutes and still was a great success. This shows even while some sections consider Indian movies’ length as a big handicap for their international acceptance, there is also another school of thought which feels it doesn’t matter at all,” said Gowariker, the director of Lagaan, which was in the race for the Oscar honours in the foreign languages films section in 2002.
While agreeing with Gowariker, Kher wondered why India should look at what others are doing to decide the future of its cinema, which he felt is well-entrenched even though they suffered from marketing issues.
“While I was in San Francisco sometime ago, I found a man holding a bottle and selling what he called ‘San Francisco’s air.’ Could any of us dream of that kind of innovative but aggressive marketing anywhere,” he asked. However, the actor was convinced that the Indian industry stood to gain significantly from its close association with the British and American industry, citing his own example in the David O Russell film Silver Lining Playbook, which has received critical acclaim at a number of top level festivals this year.
“There is no second opinion that we need to reach out to global audiences. It could be either as individual performers or through tie-ups with established banners or companies in the Hollywood,” said Kher.
Hoping that the recent tie-ups with established companies in Germany and France would signal a new beginning for the Indian film industry’s association with Western cinema, Gowariker said Indian partners need to bear in mind that films that emerge from such joint ventures cater to the requirements of both the Indian and international markets.
Gowariker also felt the proximity to the Arab world and the respect that it has given to the Indian cinema all along, should help producers and directors from both the regions to get along well for joint film ventures, based on subjects of mutual interest.
http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=545193&version=1&template_id=36&parent_id=16
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