"We don't confront anything that's uncomfortable. But the fact of the matter is that the Indian Muslim is living a very real crisis. This film is born of a very private anguish. Why is it that a Khan is asked to prove his patriotism in this country while a Jha is not? Why do I've to wear my patriotism on the sleeve?"
(Samar Khan)
After a long time Bollywood is speaking something different, different from what we conceived about Bollywood. Not the stars, but the story has captured the attention this time. Here I am talking about two films which have bravely addressed uncomfortable realities of our time.
"Shaurya" (dir: Samar Khan) & "Summer 2007" (dir: Suhail Tatari)
Shaurya
The movie revolves around the court martial of a Muslim officer, Javed Khan, in the Indian Army for shooting his commanding officer and is set against the backdrop of the Kashmir Conflict in Northern India. Rahul Bose (Maj. Siddhant Chaudhary) is assigned to be Javed Khan's defence lawyer, and the story revolves around his investigations in the circumstances leading up to the shooting.
Summer 2007
Summer 2007 starts with an unexpected opening scene of a man setting himself on fire in the middle of a crop field (title indicates that it is happening in Vidarbha, Maharashtra). Then director leads us away from this village to a rich private medical college, where we meet 5 students hooked onto MTV culture. We can see the non-political atmosphere of the campus as an orchestrated vanity fair. The 5 students ask for a transfer (to attend rural service) in order to escape from the campus election. With the expectation of enjoying the title summer in Goa, they insist on a placement nearby. As an outcome they land up in one of the most deprived villages in Maharashtra.
Their rural posting turns into a soul searching journey where they are forced to confront their own apathy, their own fears and their strange complicity in the circumstances of the village. Before they can run from there, they get sucked into the whirlpool of counter currents. Each of the five undergo different kinds of catharsis and in the end have to make a choice. Do they leave the mess just as they had found it and get away from there...or do they choose to get involved?
The director bravely presents an issue that one has only read in the newspaper or heard on the news channel and immediately forgotten thereafter. He does not throw the message in your face nor does he preach to us about solutions. He presents the reality of Indian villages in the era of "Economic Growth". He criticize media, politicians, economic policies, feudal system still prevails in India, money lending mafia, police force(which creates naxalites out of poor villagers), etc.,
A rare movie in Indian context……
Both these films are not classic films. They have their own draw backs. In the first film (Shaurya) the climax became too simplistic (but we can see the excellent performance by the main actors). In the second film the selection of actors was not up to the mark (the main actor is a new comer and just learning the basics of acting). The first part of Summer 2007 is too long. Even then these films deserve attention from viewers who love serious movies.
But unfortunately Summer 2007 became a big flop in the box office and Shaurya was an average hit. Our film critiques also ignored these films. I fear if such films are not recognized, in future no director will show the courage to take up such issues in colloid format.
(Samar Khan)
After a long time Bollywood is speaking something different, different from what we conceived about Bollywood. Not the stars, but the story has captured the attention this time. Here I am talking about two films which have bravely addressed uncomfortable realities of our time.
"Shaurya" (dir: Samar Khan) & "Summer 2007" (dir: Suhail Tatari)
Shaurya
The movie revolves around the court martial of a Muslim officer, Javed Khan, in the Indian Army for shooting his commanding officer and is set against the backdrop of the Kashmir Conflict in Northern India. Rahul Bose (Maj. Siddhant Chaudhary) is assigned to be Javed Khan's defence lawyer, and the story revolves around his investigations in the circumstances leading up to the shooting.
Summer 2007
Summer 2007 starts with an unexpected opening scene of a man setting himself on fire in the middle of a crop field (title indicates that it is happening in Vidarbha, Maharashtra). Then director leads us away from this village to a rich private medical college, where we meet 5 students hooked onto MTV culture. We can see the non-political atmosphere of the campus as an orchestrated vanity fair. The 5 students ask for a transfer (to attend rural service) in order to escape from the campus election. With the expectation of enjoying the title summer in Goa, they insist on a placement nearby. As an outcome they land up in one of the most deprived villages in Maharashtra.
Their rural posting turns into a soul searching journey where they are forced to confront their own apathy, their own fears and their strange complicity in the circumstances of the village. Before they can run from there, they get sucked into the whirlpool of counter currents. Each of the five undergo different kinds of catharsis and in the end have to make a choice. Do they leave the mess just as they had found it and get away from there...or do they choose to get involved?
The director bravely presents an issue that one has only read in the newspaper or heard on the news channel and immediately forgotten thereafter. He does not throw the message in your face nor does he preach to us about solutions. He presents the reality of Indian villages in the era of "Economic Growth". He criticize media, politicians, economic policies, feudal system still prevails in India, money lending mafia, police force(which creates naxalites out of poor villagers), etc.,
A rare movie in Indian context……
Both these films are not classic films. They have their own draw backs. In the first film (Shaurya) the climax became too simplistic (but we can see the excellent performance by the main actors). In the second film the selection of actors was not up to the mark (the main actor is a new comer and just learning the basics of acting). The first part of Summer 2007 is too long. Even then these films deserve attention from viewers who love serious movies.
But unfortunately Summer 2007 became a big flop in the box office and Shaurya was an average hit. Our film critiques also ignored these films. I fear if such films are not recognized, in future no director will show the courage to take up such issues in colloid format.
