I am a very reluctant movie-goer and OTT watcher, sometimes, to the point of being labelled ‘abnormal’. I insist that if I must spend three hours of my time at a stretch on entertaining myself, it should be just that – entertainment. I must walk away with a ‘feel good’ factor. I must learn something new and become wiser. I must feel mentally stimulated. There are a good many movies through which I could achieve these aims in the past but the numbers seem to be dwindling rapidly. That is not to say that brilliant movies are not made any more but happy content does not excite the box office as much as it did earlier . Today one can count on one hand, the number of enjoyable movies that can be watched, three generations sitting together at home over ‘chai and samosa’ on a Saturday evening. It is quite another thing that the idea of spending a Saturday evening in this manner is passé.
Censorship and film certification standards appear to have undergone serious shifts towards accepting what was not long back, totally unacceptable not just for children but for any age group. With the proliferation of OTT platforms, there is no ‘vetted content’ at all. I am not qualified to say if that is good or bad but availability of smart devices to everyone who can handle them means that such content can be viewed by any school-going child that has access to the Internet through a smart device. A primary school student can watch a blue film today with complete ease provided he or she can navigate the Net. Sex, brutality and violence pervade the digital and visual entertainment milieu. Even online games thrive on brutality and violence, the most popular ones being those that addict young minds to such fare. Remember Blue Whale? It is my hypothesis that children could grow up thinking that violent, brutal and promiscuous behaviour as well as things like alcohol and drug abuse are normal. Parents and teachers have lost control as denial of devices is not an option and expecting self-control from a pre-teen kid without investing in their home education is foolish.
Reality is the flavour of our age. Every movie or show, according to its creators, must reflect the stark reality of the big bad world. Nobody stops to think what irreversible effects this may create on young minds that have not yet developed the power to reason or discern. Add to this the stresses of poverty, broken homes, lack of avenues for growth, unemployment, pandemics, overcrowding of urban centres, radicalisation of organised religion, suppression of women and such other socio-cultural factors, and we have a fail-proof formula for the creation of a more chaotic society than the one in which we live today. Negativity sells. Violence excites. Brutality fans the animal instincts within us. Unbridled sex draws the crowds. Fanning hatred serves the self-serving. And all this on the screens set the cash registers ringing furiously. We are responsible for creating these conditions for our future generations and I do not see any hope of reversing this trend. The world of today needs a liberal dose of idealism and, if miraculously possible, some spiritual awakening to bring back a semblance of ‘goodness’ in all its dimensions.
I recently spent a disgusting two and a half hours watching a movie that hit the headlines. It required court rulings for staying bans on its screening in different parts of the country. The film has also been ‘mentioned in dispatches’ in political debates, with obviously opposing views, depending on which side of the ideological divide the speaker belonged. True or not, it made me sick in the gut to the extent that I almost threw up my interval snack. If such movies attract critical appreciation and who knows, movie awards, I am obviously and terribly out of sync with the times.
I say your megaphone is quite loud and clear as always that the messages get driven home so easily. Lucid articulation of your mind is almost becoming an addiction for me to wait in anticipation for what’s next.
Quite unlike you I am an avid movie goer and prefer to watch a movie in the hall than for the sheer expanse of viewing in large screen. But I am in complete agreement with you about the feel good factor while learning something new and becoming wiser after watching a movie. We need not be judgemental always and may not expect only the truth and nothing but the truth to be said in a movie always. Not all movies need to be a documentary I believe. There must be enough room left for creative imagination for any work of art. While the movie techniques have undergone tremendous changes in photography and set arrangements where scenes in studious are made to look like more than real life actually. Large screens not only enlarge the visual image, the modern art of story telling invariably enlarges the spatial scope manifold too. It is a complete make belief whether you like it or not. It has become so commonplace to drive an agenda in the name of investigative journalism and the same is almost force fed to swallow like a quinine pill. And a new phenomenon has emerged recently that of hordes of captive admirers who jump into the fray and raise such a cacophony in support of the story almost proving it as the ultimate truth. Voice of individuals sadly lost in the meleé.
It is here that I am a great fan of yours that you never hesitate to blow your megaphone without any inhibition and allow the readership to make their own judgements. So please keep it going. Lovin’ it hugely…..
Thank you very much for your remarks and the encouragement.
Very aptly and accurately written, Dasu. I too shudder to think about the consequences of this unbridled access to all the vices, on your fingertips, from such a young age. The so called woke crowd on one hand, which believes in freedom and independent thinking … and the fanatics and die hard believers on the other are churning society without a second thought, while the media giants and dwarfs alike, are laughing all the way to the bank. Even a useless YouTuber can create chaos and earn his dough. To add to this mess, AI enables creation of fake videos and news to look absolutely authentic. How does one survive this onslaught? Only God can tell… or maybe even He can’t…😔😔
Sir very TRUE and nicely penned down as usual.
I completely agree with your views. Societal degradation is on a logarithmic curve and it is alarming to say the least. Responsible citizens have gone impervious to the happenings around and voices such as yours are far in between. Only those who have access to people who matter, can highlight the plight of all of us. We need to wake up the sleeping giant.
Great piece. Our feelings, very well described. Not hard to guess the movie that nearly made you throw up your interval snack 🙂
Sir you have brought out a thought which is there often when we watch a new movie.
Movies that leave a happy smiling mood are now far and few.
Humorous family entertaining comedy are ‘rare’.
Let’s hope there is a full circle and we are back to some nice ones.
Very correct. My wife and I recently went to PVR to watch the same movie and believe me some scenes were so nauseating that we felt like leaving the theatre. God knows how such films pass through sensor board and get rave reviews.
Honestly , I watch movies to switch off. Enjoy some beautiful locales. Listen to some lilting music. Maybe get absorbed in a heartwarming story. Maybe get enthralled by some jaw dropping stunts. I don’t want to be educated or sermonised to or soak in “reality”. Maybe a superficial way of looking at the screen , but I am good with it
The *****Story was truly a badly made movie. They got the facts wrong. Good location, good acting, terrible story. Childish dialogue.
Your religion is bad!
Accha kya karein?
Hijaab pehen lo!
Ok!! Thanks!!
Absolutely ridiculous! People gave a standing ovation!! A serious topic is being dished out with ridiculous inaccurate statements and people have lapped it. We live on in dangerous times.
Sad but true Sir. Today the movie sells more for its gore than content. Missing directors like Sai Paranjapye, Hrishikesh Mukerjee for their clean classics. Hope the trend gets reversed
Yday night family members logged to a highly recommended movie and were puking 15 minutes from start . I haven’t seen a movie in years – don’t have a TV also to avoid hearing / seeing / listening to paid titillation. I was told and got it stopped and every one silently thanked me . Idealism – humour – empathy is what one wants around , but violence is fun !