Why do Indians love Gangs Of Wasseypur and ignore Rakht Charitra? Why is Anurag Kashyap deified and Ram Gopal Varma ostracised?
Indian audience have the tendency to play chamchas (sycophants) to a given filmmaker at a time. Ram Gopal Varma was once media’s darling, until he botched up the remake of Sholay. It was a mighty botchery. It was a big choke. That one mistake butchered his reputation.
He is still a respectable filmmaker, an important filmmaker whose name has been safely etched on the memorial wall of intelligentsia, but only for his past work, mainly Satya and Company. There is a premeditated rejection manufactured by power brokers for everything he does now. They claim that he has lost his creative instinct, and consequently, public has lost confidence in him. In the hindsight, now it seems that he has lost confidence because of his butchered reputation.
There is no doubt that his recent films have suffered with obsessively dull lighting and utterly generic, cacophonous background score, alarmingly channelling the background music of Indian soaps. After the fiasco of Ram Gopal Varma Ki Aag, he has made desperate attempts to get his grip back on the box-office. He tried outright lowbrow horror with Phoonk and Aggyat. He made a hideously lurid crime film in Not A Love Story, only to be overlooked. Had Anurag Kashyap made the same film, it would have acquired a cult status for its realism and perverse climax. Then he made an ostensible sequel of the iconic Satya to cash in on its brand name. Satya 2 wasn’t a bad film per se, but nobody cared about it. It is safe to say that most of his weak films after the weak-minded Ram Gopal Varma Ki Aag have sprung out of desperation to regain public’s confidence. However, he has also made good films after after that. Sarkar Raj was a fine film, afflicted by the pernicious side-effects of Aag. Contract was well-made film, but it was pelted with brickbats, hence, audience shunned it. Rann was a decent film chastised by propaganda connoisseurs. Rakht Charitra saga had all the ingredients that higbrow crowd loves: it had melancholy, austerity, sad ending, no lip-syncing songs and no melodrama. But media remained low-key about it. It was Rakht Charitra that set the framework for Anurag Kashyap’s highly feted Gangs Of Wassseypur saga, yet both films drew opposite reactions.
Karan Johar calls him a “mad man” with pomp. If he used that epithet on any other respectable director, his house would be stoned by moral police.
Anurag Kashyap had minced no words about his hatred towards Karan Johar and his brand of cinema. Now, years later, he has a nexus with Karan Johar, percolating through power brokers, corporations and media. Now he stands head-to-head with him as the most powerful man in Hindi cinema. He also had acrimony with Taran Adarsh, which was evident when the latter irrationally panned his earlier films and the former riposted that a person like Taran Adarsh didn’t have the acumen to understand his films. Gradually Anurag Kashyap realised that making a good film wasn’t enough to get accolades. He had to shake hands with the Devils. (Wherein the euphemism “handshake” came about in That Girl In Yellow Boots.) He had to join the social circuits of the moral police. He had to puff on the chillum with the animales. Since then Taran Adarsh has given hefty ratings to his films, even That Girl In Yellow Boots, which is far-flung from his predilections.
Anurag Kashyap has become a cult of connoisseurship. The elitists venerate him. Critics spill their blood for him. But five years ago, the same people ridiculed him, calling him “the self-proclaimed torch-bearer of Indian cinema”. It is ironic that now they call him a maverick filmmaker, since they marauded him when he attempted David Lynch-like surrealism, intellectually challenging abstruse art in the brilliantly-made No Smoking. He is far gifted, far more versatile director than people accept him for. In many ways, they now make him work with his hands tied. The elite audience, the self-proclaimed representatives of good cinema, have a blinkered outlook of quality. Either they like masala films or austere cinema. Anything that diverts from their parochial outlook, is declared unintelligent. Anurag Kashyap understands that handicap and now he plays accordingly to their needs. He’s still brilliant but capable of a lot more.
If a Ram Gopal Varma’s film fails at box-office, it’s considered his own fault. But when an Anurag Kashyap’s film flops, the film industry and the audience get the rap for it. Take for example, the poor box-office returns of Ugly have led to diatribes from the moral police. However, the Cabal is flagrantly ignoring the fact that Ugly was released abruptly without any publicity. If fans don’t know that an Anurag Kashyap’s film is releasing, how would they see it? Gangs Of Wasseypur filled the coffers of exhibitors because it was released with proper planning. Even Aamir Khan would struggle to find audience if he released his film abruptly. The reason they overlook the simple reasons is, because it defeats their propaganda. Deep inside, these elitists wanted Ugly to underperform at box-office so they could sell hate and propaganda.
So, why is it that they have deified Anurag Kashyap but ostracised Ram Gopal Varma? The reason is, everybody worships the rising sun. They claim to love Anurag Kashyap, but they are opportunists, riding on his coattails to manipulate public. They are like those propaganda activists of ‘Khap Panchayat’ and ‘Bajrang Dal’ — the self-appointed protectors of society. Anurag Kashyap is not their favourite director. He is an image to boost their social status; he is an opportunity for braggadocio; he is their trophy wife.
Indian audience have the tendency to play chamchas (sycophants) to a given filmmaker at a time. Ram Gopal Varma was once media’s darling, until he botched up the remake of Sholay. It was a mighty botchery. It was a big choke. That one mistake butchered his reputation.
He is still a respectable filmmaker, an important filmmaker whose name has been safely etched on the memorial wall of intelligentsia, but only for his past work, mainly Satya and Company. There is a premeditated rejection manufactured by power brokers for everything he does now. They claim that he has lost his creative instinct, and consequently, public has lost confidence in him. In the hindsight, now it seems that he has lost confidence because of his butchered reputation.
There is no doubt that his recent films have suffered with obsessively dull lighting and utterly generic, cacophonous background score, alarmingly channelling the background music of Indian soaps. After the fiasco of Ram Gopal Varma Ki Aag, he has made desperate attempts to get his grip back on the box-office. He tried outright lowbrow horror with Phoonk and Aggyat. He made a hideously lurid crime film in Not A Love Story, only to be overlooked. Had Anurag Kashyap made the same film, it would have acquired a cult status for its realism and perverse climax. Then he made an ostensible sequel of the iconic Satya to cash in on its brand name. Satya 2 wasn’t a bad film per se, but nobody cared about it. It is safe to say that most of his weak films after the weak-minded Ram Gopal Varma Ki Aag have sprung out of desperation to regain public’s confidence. However, he has also made good films after after that. Sarkar Raj was a fine film, afflicted by the pernicious side-effects of Aag. Contract was well-made film, but it was pelted with brickbats, hence, audience shunned it. Rann was a decent film chastised by propaganda connoisseurs. Rakht Charitra saga had all the ingredients that higbrow crowd loves: it had melancholy, austerity, sad ending, no lip-syncing songs and no melodrama. But media remained low-key about it. It was Rakht Charitra that set the framework for Anurag Kashyap’s highly feted Gangs Of Wassseypur saga, yet both films drew opposite reactions.
Karan Johar calls him a “mad man” with pomp. If he used that epithet on any other respectable director, his house would be stoned by moral police.
Anurag Kashyap had minced no words about his hatred towards Karan Johar and his brand of cinema. Now, years later, he has a nexus with Karan Johar, percolating through power brokers, corporations and media. Now he stands head-to-head with him as the most powerful man in Hindi cinema. He also had acrimony with Taran Adarsh, which was evident when the latter irrationally panned his earlier films and the former riposted that a person like Taran Adarsh didn’t have the acumen to understand his films. Gradually Anurag Kashyap realised that making a good film wasn’t enough to get accolades. He had to shake hands with the Devils. (Wherein the euphemism “handshake” came about in That Girl In Yellow Boots.) He had to join the social circuits of the moral police. He had to puff on the chillum with the animales. Since then Taran Adarsh has given hefty ratings to his films, even That Girl In Yellow Boots, which is far-flung from his predilections.
Anurag Kashyap has become a cult of connoisseurship. The elitists venerate him. Critics spill their blood for him. But five years ago, the same people ridiculed him, calling him “the self-proclaimed torch-bearer of Indian cinema”. It is ironic that now they call him a maverick filmmaker, since they marauded him when he attempted David Lynch-like surrealism, intellectually challenging abstruse art in the brilliantly-made No Smoking. He is far gifted, far more versatile director than people accept him for. In many ways, they now make him work with his hands tied. The elite audience, the self-proclaimed representatives of good cinema, have a blinkered outlook of quality. Either they like masala films or austere cinema. Anything that diverts from their parochial outlook, is declared unintelligent. Anurag Kashyap understands that handicap and now he plays accordingly to their needs. He’s still brilliant but capable of a lot more.
If a Ram Gopal Varma’s film fails at box-office, it’s considered his own fault. But when an Anurag Kashyap’s film flops, the film industry and the audience get the rap for it. Take for example, the poor box-office returns of Ugly have led to diatribes from the moral police. However, the Cabal is flagrantly ignoring the fact that Ugly was released abruptly without any publicity. If fans don’t know that an Anurag Kashyap’s film is releasing, how would they see it? Gangs Of Wasseypur filled the coffers of exhibitors because it was released with proper planning. Even Aamir Khan would struggle to find audience if he released his film abruptly. The reason they overlook the simple reasons is, because it defeats their propaganda. Deep inside, these elitists wanted Ugly to underperform at box-office so they could sell hate and propaganda.
So, why is it that they have deified Anurag Kashyap but ostracised Ram Gopal Varma? The reason is, everybody worships the rising sun. They claim to love Anurag Kashyap, but they are opportunists, riding on his coattails to manipulate public. They are like those propaganda activists of ‘Khap Panchayat’ and ‘Bajrang Dal’ — the self-appointed protectors of society. Anurag Kashyap is not their favourite director. He is an image to boost their social status; he is an opportunity for braggadocio; he is their trophy wife.
