Film director Anurag Kashyap
Credit: PTI Photo
Filmmaker Anurag Kashyap is known for his outspoken nature, often sparking controversy with his blunt remarks. Last month, he stirred up criticism within the Bengali film community by describing the state of Bengali cinema as 'ghatia' or trashy.
Kashyap's remarks reflect his unfiltered approach to commenting on various aspects of the film industry, adding to his reputation for stirring debate and discussion.
At a recent event in Kolkata, Kashyap commented that 90 per cent of feminist filmmakers making feminist movies are ‘frauds’. Despite ongoing criticism, Kashyap continues to attract attention with his provocative remarks.
Regarding Kashyap’s comment on Bengali cinema, it seems he may not have considered the commercially successful films produced in Bengal over the past six to seven years. His criticism, therefore, may lack insight into recent developments in the industry, prompting him to make hasty judgments.
It is true that as compared to the humongous earning of Bollywood (Rs 5.380 crores), Telugu, Malayalam and Tamil film industry last year, Bengali cinema couldn't reach a mere 100 crores in 2023.
There is no denying that the themes of Bengali movies, over the years, have remained solely fixated on Kolkata. As compared to the budget of the aforementioned film industries, the budget of Bengali movies remains severely limited.
Producers struggle to cough up money, while directors, artistes, and technicians have to manage with abysmally low budgets. Leading filmmakers of Kolkata like Srijit Mukherjee and Kaushik Ganguly are undoubtedly producing commendable movies, but they are yet to create a pan-Indian ripple.
However, Prasun Chatterjee’s 2021 movie Dostojee based on the story of two young boys navigating the burgeoning religious divide in a small village following the demolition of Babri Masjid in 1992, was screened at 32 international film festivals in 26 countries.
The movie went on to win nine international awards. Kaushik Ganguly’s 2017 film Nagarkirtan vividly recreates the story of a transgender woman from the slums, plucking the courage to elope with a delivery boy from a Chinese restaurant, who works as a flautist.
Some of the recent Bengali movies that displayed thematic originality and were commercially successful include Durga Sohay (2017), Bibaho Diaries (2017), Srijit Mukherjee’s Shah Jahan Regency (2019), and Brahma Janen Gopon Kommoti (2020). Brahma Janen… is a feminist film as it depicts a young woman named Shobori asserting her right to perform priesthood, confronting menstrual taboos, and vehemently opposing the concept of kanyadan in a woman’s marriage.
A prominent issue in Bengali cinema is the fixation of some contemporary directors on the stalwarts of the 60s and 70s, such as Satyajit Ray, Mrinal Sen, and Ritwik Ghatak.
For instance, Srijit Mukherjee’s sequel to Ray’s 1966 Nayak, titled Autograph (2010). Featuring Prosenjit Chatterjee as the protagonist, the film fails to offer anything original or path-breaking. Instead, it appears hackneyed, laboured, and pretentious, lacking in innovation or genuine artistic merit. The movie Apur Panchali (2013) portrays Apu, the child character from Ray’s classic 'Pather Panchali', now middle-aged, being invited by a film student to attend an award ceremony in Germany. The film is perceived as a desperate attempt to evoke nostalgia for Ray’s movies.
In recent years, the industry has witnessed the emergence of talented actors like Ritwick Chakraborty, Anirban Bhattacharya and Jisshu Sengupta, Sohini Sarkar and Mimi Chakraborty. When someone like Kashyap chooses to label Bengali movies as 'ghatia’, such arguments do not hold water.
Kashyap’s movies are predominantly violence-driven, often depicting gory scenes. Gangs of Wasseypur was replete with gory violence, explicit sexual content, and profanity.
His 2015 movie Bombay Velvet was a commercial disaster. Additionally, he has expressed admiration for films like Animal, which depicts stomach-churning violence.
Therefore, it is worth considering his own preferences before dismissing another industry. The very aesthetics of film making encompasses more than just sex, violence and titillation; it also involves portraying aspects of life that are uplifting and affirming.
Be that as it may, movies need to cater to the masses. There is no doubt that Bengali films in recent years have been limited by a sense of Bengali exceptionalism. This mindset must be eschewed at all cost if the filmmakers want their movies to have an enduring appeal beyond Kolkata. The fact is no film industry can thrive if its movies do not have a successful commercial run.