Success of films like Pushpa is a clear death sentence for the art film genre in India. It's very hard to see it coming back from here, atleast in the theatre market.
This is really sad. Theatres are practically the only way to make real money in the movie business. Most people don't realise that OTTs for movies are just like streaming platforms for music. They don't pay shyt. So without the incentives, I don't know where these guys will go. Perhaps philanthropic donations? Hah! I hope so.
Ideally, the line between art and commerce in cinema should be thin, and getting thinner with time. But here in India, that line is unfortunately like the Indo-Pak border, and only getting worse. One of the very few people who even tried to bridge this gap in Indian mainstream was Mr. Aamir Khan, and he found great success as well (Taare Zameen Par, Rang De Basanti, etc.). But now with such brainless, masala films proving to be the only thing that can make serious money, we can expect Indian Cinema to keep going in this direction. Tragic.
Can't blame anyone. It's a tough time. Cinemas are gasping for their last breath, and it'd be quite a stretch for Indian movie stars to put anything on the line for "artistic integrity". Thus, the only market left for art cinema will now be the OTT play (which already quite small and unrewarding). My only hope is that it doesn't shrink too much as well, as the fight for traction in the "real Bharat" intensifies.
What has traction in the "real Bharat" got to do with cringe cinema? Top brass at these OTT platforms has a really low opinion of real Bharat's intelligence. Evident from the quality of most of their investment decisions, they think we're all EXTREMELY dumb. In the quest of being "safe" with their investments, they'd stay as far as possible from making original, sensible, or meaningful films. It's just too "risky" in their eyes.
Perhaps they're right (which is sad). But the good news is that folks like TVF (Arunabh Kumar, et al) are also right. Success of stuff like Scam 1992 (miraculous), Panchayat (wonderful) and The Kashmir Files (controversial, but tight) is undeniable. While the film executives "strategise" the future, I sincerely hope that such gems are also used as examples of success. At the end of the day, these very few executives will decide what almost a billion people watch for getting entertained (or inspired). Can only pray that they make the right decisions.
I'm really happy that the films mentioned above have made great money. Cinemas are a dying cultural force and they need to be preserved. God save them! What I really hope is that their success doesn't paint the entire country in one colour. Many people don't like to keep their brains in the fridge while watching stuff. I certainly don't. We should have something to enjoy as well.
Whenever I think about cinema, I'm reminded about the genius of this article by Mr. Scorsese. It's brilliance personified. Read it here.
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