By Kunal Arora:
The hundred years of entertaining, changing, flourishing and star creating cinema started with the purpose of imparting knowledge and entertainment, cinema has made a landmark in creating various new specific areas of interest for the Indian as well as foreign viewers. From the Gestures move to Chikni Chameli, from full sleeve blouses to bikini’s, from extreme realistic and lovable to fictional & dramatic, from hit to Super hits, from 100 crore to 300 crore grosser and many more, Indian cinema, in these hundred years, made a significant mark and stood very well on the platform showing the glimpse of the change that will come in the near future. But what change has been brought in the part of viewers?
Raising the entertainment level is one part and bringing change in mentality, lifestyle and behavior is another and that part has been untouched from the starting to the completion of hundred years. Though we all are glad of the positive side but on another note, it’s sad to say the change it might have brought in these years is still at a minimal level. The viewers have been taught by cinema to accept all the changes on the screen while watching and forgetting all when they step out of the theater. We can accept girls flirting with boys, getting naughty, used as an aphrodisiac, as a philanderer, as a bold and strong part of society and homosexual couples only on the screens, but it has not brought any change in the thought process of the viewers. The reason being that cinema has only worked for itself, in this world of selfishness, cinema has played the role of biggest self centered creature; the stars being the part of it, running for their own success, ladies getting mad for the apparels and makeup, endorsements being the most attractive part in terms of money and fame.
Realistic movies like Chandani bar, Dunno why, The pink mirror, Cheeni Kum and others have been produced but with the motive of earning and entertaining, introducing the money factor in it. There have been some real film makers in cinema but they lost interest after they found their competitors making more money by entertaining more. In this way, cinema has reached its real motive of only & only entertainment without striving to bring about social change.
What fixes Indian Cinema has to bring now is keeping the cultural, regional, spiritual and human values on top mixing it with the entertainment doses to make it a perfect blend for the viewers to see, learn and act.