Whatever happened to the formula?

In Kismat, released in 1943, Ashok Kumar played a criminal with a good heart — some sort of Robin Hood — the first anti-hero of Indian cinema. Kismat broke the formula of the time: multiple songs, one comedy track, an action climax and romantic play.

The Bollywood formula had for years been both mocked at and lapped up. At the same time, every now and then there would be films that broke the pattern, giving audiences something new. Then again, over time, these novelties themselves would become part of the formula.

“There was a phase when out-and-out comedies were being made, then a phase where making a film with a social message was the formula and another where realistic cinema was the formula. All of these began as experiments, but over time became set patterns for filmmakers to duplicate,” says veteran scriptwriter Javed Siddiqi.

Filmmakers like Guru Dutt were the first to break the routine. “Although he made an out-and-out masala film like Baaz initially, he soon started giving something new in every film, be it Pyaasa, Kaagaz Ke Phool or Sahib, Biwi Aur Ghulam,” Siddiqi says.

Then came the Mehmood phase. The actor was such a hit that in some films he was paid more than the lead actor. So, whatever the story or genre, most films in the 60s had a track featuring Mehmood.

Siddiqi says that some filmmakers evolved their own distinct formulas. “Rajshri was known for musicals, while Bimal Roy films had a social message, be it Do Bigha Zameen, Bandini or Satyakam.”

‘Art house’ cinema followed in the late 70s and 80s, where filmmakers like Shyam Benegal made realistic films like Ankur and Mandi. “The thing about Benegal’s films, or MS Sathyu and Govind Nihalani, was that they laid more emphasis on treatment than the story itself. It was more important to get the portrayal right, and so their films came to be termed as ‘realistic’,” says Siddiqi.

According to senior journalist Bhavana Somaaya, a defining moment was in 1989 when Maine Pyar Kiya was released. “It was the first time a hero went against his father’s rules and when he asked his mother if he was doing anything wrong, she told him she wholly supported his actions,” says Somaaya, citing the film as a first where the ‘bharatiya nari’ went against her husband’s wishes. This was repeated years later in Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, when Jaya Bachchan stood up to her husband.

Maine Pyar Kiya, and Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak before that, made romance ‘cool’, connecting with the college crowd and ushering in the era of the ‘chocolate boys’ Salman, Aamir and Shah Rukh Khan. Shah Rukh’s Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge introduced a new element — ‘NRI romances’.

CHANGING AUDIENCE TASTES
Lately, with the multiplex culture taking hold and filmmakers targeting a younger, urban audience, newer themes have emerged.

In Lagaan, a group of villagers went against the might of the British Empire, not with weapons, but with bat and ball in a cricket match. Dil Chahta Hai explored the theme of male bonding, while smaller films like Iqbal and Bheja Fry too gave audiences new stories to bite into.

“Earlier, the medium was used to retell stories already known. Today, the focus is on experimentation,” says Santosh Desai, CEO
of Future Brands.

“You may have the odd formulaic film like Ghajini or Wanted doing well, but the majority of successful films in the last few years — be it Taare Zameen Par, A Wednesday, Jab We Met or Chak De India — have veered away from clichés,” says Siddiqi.

The editing is crisper too, which gives films an edgier feel. Digital Intermediate (DI), the Photoshop of filmmaking, and special effects (SFX) have made their entry even into medium budget films.

But even as these changes take place, some of the formulaic elements, like song and dance, continue to hold sway, even if in a very different form. Many films today, for example, have songs playing in the background and the actors lip-sync only if the story demands it. The extravagant song picturisation, with 100 dancers in the background, is a rarity.

The audience, clearly, is not one that would be easily satisfied with archaic plots and mundane storylines anymore.

“There is a great hunger for fresher stories among the audience today. And when your audience changes, your films need to change too — only this time, the change is of a greater degree,” says Desai. The current Hindi film audience, he says, finds itself distracted with not just big ticket Hollywood films nowadays, but cinema from other corners of the world too.

More than fifty five per cent of a film’s earnings come from youngsters in the age group of 18-35, say trade experts, and filmmakers seem to have realised that in order to cater to the taste buds of this young crowd, telling new stories is the way forward.

“You need to experiment if you want to strike a chord with the audience. Of course, you have to do it within certain parameters and that’s what you get to see in films today,” says Kabir Khan, who made two films different in treatment — Kabul Express and New York. One had a documentary feel to it, while the latter was a more commercial product. New York was among the top grossers of 2009.

“The trick is to do something differently, yet retain certain aspects. New York, for example, was perceived as a different film because the topic of global terrorism was new to Hindi cinema, but it had all the elements a mainstream Hindi film has had traditionally.”

Many of last year’s hits are testimony to the fact that audiences, exposed to Hollywood blockbusters like Avatar, are ready for bigger changes from Bollywood. While Dev.D dealt with the alienation of the youth, Love Aaj Kal with confused romances, and
Three Idiots tackled the pressure students go through in our premier institutions for higher education, among the more surprising hits was Paa, which dealt with Progeria — a topic that would perhaps have been unimaginable in a Hindi film even a few years back. In the recent Ishqiya, a widow flirts unabashedly with not one but two men in order to get what she wants, but the audience isn’t flinching.

“Every time I sit to write my script today, it’s a liberating feeling to know that I cater to an audience that’s a lot more exposed and intelligent, and willing to enjoy something fresh,” says Imtiaz Ali, maker of Jab We Met and Love Aaj Kal.