Starring the Director

What’s common between a Karan Johar, a Farhan Akhtar, a Farah Khan, an Imtiaz Ali and a Rohit Shetty? Besides belonging to a breed that usually calls the shots behind the camera, they are nothing less than the very stars they direct. In a few days from now Rohit Shetty will host Khatron Ke Khiladi, the reality TV series that was previously anchored by Akshay Kumar and Ajay Devgn; Imtiaz Ali is more visible across TV channels than Randeep Hooda, the leading man of his new film Highway, Karan Johar is back with yet another season of Koffee With Karan and with the colossal success he has enjoyed as an actor in Bhaag Milhka Bhaag might just keep Farhan Akhtar from directing another film for a long time… never have been directors so busy in front of the camera.

In Hindi cinema most directors have traditionally towered over others. There have been showmen like Raj Kapoor, stalwarts such as K. Asif and Bimal Roy, auteurs in the form of Guru Dutt and Vijay Anand, and general larger than life personalities like Mehboob Khan or Kamal Amrohi but rarely did one get to see most of these attributes rolled into one. Back in the day a star’s mere presence was enough to get things buzzing and a big director’s name attached to the project only made it more appetizing whereas today, the director is not just as important as the stars to sell a film but in some cases it’s solely their billing that makes all the difference. It’s not like films were never sold on the name of the director in the past, case in point any Raj Kapoor directed film, but in an era where a film’s pre and/or post release publicity is possibly more essential than the content or the actors in it, the director has become the biggest draw in most films. Thanks to an informed audience largely in the context of a 24x7 media, the persona of a filmmaker is inseparable from the film he/ she makes and therefore it’s practically impossible to disassociate an Anurag Kashyap from the subjects he tackles. Similarly the schematics of, for the want of a better term, small-town India are an integral part of a Vishal Bhardwaj or a Tigmanshu Dhulia film much like the overwhelming arc of the human condition cannot not be a fragment of a Sanjay Leela Bhasali film. Perhaps that’s the reason a food and travel based TV show that also shares its name with Imtiaz Ali’s new release gets him and the leading lady, Alia Bhatt as guests as opposed to the ‘hero’ Randeep Hooda.

One of the reasons for this lush idolization of the director as the star could also be the increase in the number of personal stories filmmakers have been tackling. Although new Bollywood still continues to adhere to a somewhat typical Hindi cinema template, the tales seem to be less formulaic. If Farahan Akhtar would have attempted his Dil Chata Hai a decade or two before he wouldn’t have been allowed the visible sense of freedom as far as characters and situations went. The emergence of this rather rare quality in a system that seems to lack a limit to the commodification of film in general could very well be the thing that separates this generation of filmmakers from others.  Ergo, in a larger sense, the director, today, is truly the star of a film and this’s why more people are keen to experience a Raanjhana because of an Anand Rai and that’s why an Imtiaz Ali or an Anurag Kashyap bring truckloads more to Rockstar or a Dev D. than a Ranbir Kapoor or Abhay Deol could possibly convey.  The advantage of this phenomenon is that it makes possible a certain kind of films that otherwise would have been extremely difficult to get made- Swades, Pyar Ke Side Effects, Mithiya, Kahaani, Paan Singh Tomar, and Shanghai to name a few. From an art versus commerce aspect this line seems to be one that can make everyone- the filmmaker, the viewer and the trade- happy as nearly everyone gets what they want but there is a grave flip side as well.

The non-stop spotlight on the creators as against the wares and the baggage of filmmaker’s image runs the risk of overburdening the films they make- Saat Khoon Maaf, That Girl in Yellow Boots and Shanghai. While a Rockstar enjoys the shadow of Imtiaz Ali as an artist on Jordan, which propels the viewer to look beyond the ill structured screenplay and even the abject lack of reason for the protagonist’s angst, the seeming lack of apathy on Dibakar Banerjee’s part towards the proceedings fetters Shanghai. One of the better films in recent time, Shanghai is chillingly real and yet, the audience maintained a safe distance from it. Unwillingly to judge on behalf of his viewer, Banerjee’s coldness to what transpires in the film could have forced a similar reaction on the viewer’s part. In spite of the pitfalls this is more than just a good time to be a director.

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Love Aaj Kal

*Spoiler Alert! Read at your own risk.

Love Aaj Kal is a very well crafted tale of modern love which this reviewer greatly enjoyed. Barring a couple of instances where I was let down, by and large this is a good film. Yes, people know when the soul mate light goes off but ladies and gentlemen people aren’t stupid enough to live life by some light, now are they? Jai and Meera meet in London and start living out a relationship. Two years later when Meera has the opportunity to come back to India to work, Jai refuses to let go of his ambition of moving to San Francisco. So they both break-up as it seems to be the only practical possibility.

Isn’t very obvious from the break-up scene that Meera isn’t as kicked about it as Jai seems to be? From that point onwards Jai leads a life based on living it for the moment but Meera starts operating on two planes. Therein one knows that this is going to be one long tale of the woman realizing something that she knew three years ago!

Jai meets Veer Singh, a friendly restaurateur, who takes it upon himself to make Jai realize that love can’t be practical. Through parallel stories of Veer Singh in the 1960’s and Jai in the 2000’s we see the things people do for love. Jai and Meera continue to keep in touch and even end up coaxing each other to move on. Jai meets a foreigner and Meera falls for her boss. Jai surprises Meera by landing in Delhi and in the time they spend together they both realizes that some where they need to end the bond if life has to go on.

A year later Meera is all set to marry and Jai becomes a part of the festivity. Just before the marriage Jai realizes that he can’t go on without Meera but perhaps it’s a little too late. Meera doesn’t think so for she too realizes that Jai means more than the past to her. She calls him to from her honeymoon to confess but Jai breaks the news of finally moving to San Francisco. Meera gives up and returns to her marriage.

Why?

Even at the airport when Jai is forced by Veer Singh to see her off, Meera is happy to see her now ex boyfriend and yet chooses not to say anything that will go against the break up. Is she doing all this to send some message to her boy-trapped-in-a-man’s-body boyfriend?

Meera and Jai continue to keep in touch and in some respect of the term do carry out a long distance relationship, the one reason they broke up for. Meera is angry when he meets someone new and he isn’t too keen that some other man would be holding what was ‘his’. Even when they meet in Delhi while trying to relive the olden days without performance anxiety they are clearly still into each other. When he boyfriend proposes marriage to her Meera asks for Jai’s approval of sorts. Why couldn’t she just tell him how she felt?

Looking at Meera it’s hard to believe that someone would be in a relationship for two years, break-up when marriage is all over mind, then keep in touch with the ex, spend time with the ex as if the clock were turned back a few years, marry someone else when she is clearly still hopelessly in love and tell her husband that she wants to solve the thing with her ex-boyfriend? Meera is still not over Jai whereas he comes across as someone who is still in love with Meera. Some of you might see that as a sexist take on the whole thing but the fact that the lead actor happens to be the producer of the film might just about exercise more than some control over the setting.

Of course, this is a film to showcase Saif Ali Khan’s all round talent and to this reviewer he doesn’t fail. I was having a conversation with a friend who was of the opinion that perhaps Imtiaz Ali had to rewrite the story once Saif Ali came on as producer and maybe that’s why some times in the film the nuances on the character feel forced. That could be the case but this is something that could happen with a lot of scripts. You rarely get everything that you desire and the stars, the celestial variety, are never too crazy about alignment. Some people might also want to see the flavors of the season like Abhay Deol or Shahid Kapur play Jai but this is a character that needs a very wide range of acting flair and at the same time not be too distinct; this is something that a younger Aamir Khan or Shah Rukh Khan would have managed. This is something that Saif Ali Khan does with much ease. Jai is Saif and Saif is Jai. Sadly I don’t share the same sentiments when it comes to Deepika Padukone. Love Aaj Kal is like a blessing for the lady for it will save her from being considered a one trick pony. Not that she is the best thing since Sridevi when it comes to performing but Love Aaj Kal gives her ample space but there are a few scenes where she goofs up big time. The conversation on the phone when Meera and Jai are bitchin’ each other out loses some of its fizz due to Deepika Padukone not-trying-to-act acting.

The strangest thing about the screenplay is that even though it is spread over some five years none of the characters grow beyond a point. That is a disappointment as the entire exercise is about turning over and realizing the worth of what one has and appreciating before it dissipates.

What is the point then of the parallel stories, two generations, two different times and people? By the end of the whole thing if both the stories were to culminate on similar lines why does Veer Singh go on harping about times being different now? If Harleen didn’t have any say in her marriage and if Meera feels let down when Jai suggests breaking up instead of marriage why does she agree? Why would Meera go on forcing to live her life in the opposite direction of what her heart desires? Why would wait all these years only for Jai to ‘grow up’ for things to get right? On one hand she will be modern woman enough and not tell him how she feels and on the other hand she doesn’t mind telling her husband in the divorce court that she will wait for Jai to show up once he realizes her value. It’s like saying 40 years later women have a choice but if and when they exercise freewill it will be a wrong deal! Also the only thing apparent in this day and age is that people in love are egoistical and won’t say what they feel and go on doing what they don’t want.

Am I being naïve in seeing things so simply? At the end Love Aaj Kal the only thing that was as clear as the sunlight that greeted me outside was that internet and cellphones have convinced us that even though we break up, we will always be close to an inbox to set things right. In the mean time we twist!

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