Spectacle mired in petty politics

Nonika Singh

Year of the heroine, of big-ticket duds, of sleeper hits, of controversies… There are many, many ways to look back at the star-kissed and -cursed year that 2017 was. Several films flopped putting the reputation of ace directors and superstars in the line of fire. Kabir Khan, Imtiaz Ali, Vishal Bhardwaj, Anurag Basu and Madhur Bhandarkar disappointed with their films that were anticipated to be blockbusters. Akshay Kumar turned out to be the most dependable man of the year with a few superhits; two of them had his name shining bright.

If the Padmavati controversy and the IFFI row undermined artistic liberty, debate over nepotism kept the controversy fires burning too. Fearless Kangana Ranaut’s magic may not have worked in Rangoon and Simran, but off screen, actually on a popular television show, she gave enough sound bytes to demand and command attention. Her never-ending feud with ‘ex’ Hrithik Roshan rolled on, forcing even Roshan to issue a spirited defence of his “we were never lovers” position.

Roshan otherwise began the year ably; his film Kaabil becoming the first superhit of the year even though it clashed with Shah Rukh Khan’s Raees, which did fairly good business too. Undeniably, the year belonged to SS Rajamouli. Answering the query on everyone’s lips: “Kattapa Ne Baahubali Ko Kyun Maara,” with Baahubali 2, he not only satiated the curiosity of cinemaholics, but also decimated the divide between the North and the South. It also became the highest-grossing Indian film in history, worldwide. The real winner of the year overseas was a film from 2016 — Aamir Khan’s Dangal. The December release had a dream run in China, which now boasts of an Aamir Khan fan club too. 

Indian beauties Deepika Padukone and Priyanka Chopra’s overhyped Hollywood debuts proved to be much ado about nothing, at least closer home. Of the two, Priyanka still managed to garner favourable reviews.

Meanwhile, India’s tryst with Hollywood continued unabated. With a cool collection of Rs 60 crore, Thor was declared a superhit. Cash registers were kept ringing by Irrfan Khan, Ayushmann Khurrana and, most of all, Varun Dhawan. The latter picked up two superhits (Judwaa 2, Badrinath Ki Dulhaniya). Ayushmann hit the bull’s eye with Shubh Mangal Saavdhan; his Bareilly Ki Barfi turned out to be a profitable venture too. The swagger of his co-star Rajkummar Rao too struck home and won him plaudits for Bareilly… and solid critical acclaim for Newton — one of the many unexpected hits of the year. However, the smile on our faces faded when the latter failed to move ahead in the Oscar race.

People love to laugh and smile, never mind the silly guffaws that some films packed. Comic quotient of Golmaal Again and Fukrey Returns failed to impress critics, but was paisa wasool for viewers. People’s verdict once again proved nothing works better than the winning formula of sequels.

In the last week of December, Salman Khan, who seemed to have lost a bit of glow with Tubelight, bounced back with Tiger Zinda Hai. Last heard, he was still growling… 

With four impending releases, including the hit franchise Dabangg 3, lined up for 2018, you can bet your money on the actor. And then you have Akshay again, all padded up to rule the marquee with Padman, Gold, Crack. But our eyes are still searching for the resplendent Padmavati, which is awaiting green signal from the CBFC. In the answer to the quixotic dilemma, “Do we finally get to see Padmavati or not”, hinges the standing of the world’s largest democracy.

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Law of success and failure

Insinuations began just as director Amit V Masurkar’s Newton emerged as critics’delight and became India’s official entry to the Oscars. Then in came rumours of it being a copy of Iranian movie Secret Ballot. While these were quelled by makers of the latter, it fell out of the Oscar race.

Ladies take the lead

It was pitched to be the year of women-centric films, but, at the BO, the films laid a turkey. If Begum Jaan was a disaster, Naam Shabana and Noor didn’t create ripples either. Political drama Indu Sarkar nosedived and Kangana Ranaut’s Simran fared average. Tumhari Sulu and Secret Superstar, however, did fairly well.

Gender pay parity, a distant dream

In 2015, Salman Khan dismissed gender pay disparity as bullshit. But, in 2017, rumours about Deepika Padukone carrying a fatter pay check than her male co-stars in Padmavati made headlines. However, reverse pay disparity is a distant dream; more so with Priyanka Chopra being the only actress on the Forbes India top 10 list.

Streaming in the world 

The more things change, the more they remain the same. As familiarity breeds interest, the top ranking serials on Indian TV once again were Kumkum Bhagya, 

Yeh Hai Mohabbatein, Yeh Rishta 

Kya Kehlata Hai and Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah, one of India’s longest running sitcoms.

If you thought spinoffs were an exclusive prerogative of Game of Thrones, you probably missed Kundali Bhagya, born out of the popular Kumkum Bhagya.

Game of Thrones proved to be as much a game of addiction in India as in the rest of the world where its viewership touched and crossed a humungous 16.7 million. 

Even though spoilers abounded and some of its episodes were leaked ahead of their release, Season 7 had no dearth of takers in India. Hotstar, the app, encashed on the frenzy and made the episode(s) available shortly after it was telecast in the US and much ahead of its telecast on Star World India.

Anglophiles in India were also watching what the world was seeing, thanks to streaming websites. India’s video streaming market grew even bigger as The Crown, Stranger Things and Narcos enticed niche viewers. For the Hindi bhaashi, the queen of television soaps, Ekta Kapoor, launched ALT Balaji with five original web series. 

While her all-time favourite actors Ram Kapoor and Sakshi Tanwar featured in Karrle Tu Bhi Mohabbat, the actor of the year, Rajkummar Rao, stepped into the shoes of Netaji in Bose: Dead/Alive. His transformation as well as acting prowess had everyone sit up and take notice. The series based on Anuj Dhar’s book India’s Biggest Cover-up, however, has so far evinced a lukewarm response.

Meanwhile, Big Boss 11 and KBC Season 9 grabbed enough eyeballs. KBC might have metamorphosed into an emotional show rather than a knowledge-driven one, yet the magic of Big B kept ticking all the right check boxes. The episode featuring Anand Kumar, the mathematician and founder of Super 30 educational programme, helped the show top the TRP ratings. 

If Big B is synonymous with KBC, Shah Rukh Khan is a more than ideal choice for Ted Talks India: Nayi Soch. Inspiring and inspired as the host, SRK gets celebs to talk of life-altering experiences. The show is touching and is ‘warming’ its way into the hearts of the audiences. In a recent episode, Shah Rukh’s best friend Karan Johar’s emotional letter to his children made viewers heave a collective heartfelt sigh of appreciation. Johar, in the meanwhile, is not only in charge of the lives of his kids, but that of many millennials too as he dishes out advise on a radio channel. Well, he is the new relationship guru or agony uncle, if you wish to call him so.

Will watching Indian soaps in 2018 be a less agonising affair, don’t just cross your fingers, simply press different buttons. You Tube, Netflix, Amazon, Hotstar… entertainment has many new names and you'll feel spoilt for choice. Happy viewing!

Mother of all controversies

Padmavati occupied national consciousness and prime time television all through the year. What began as an act of vandalism by Karni Sena activists during the shooting in Jaipur soon snowballed into a conflagration that knew no bounds. Rajputs in most parts of the country joined hands to protest against the perceived insult to their community. Politicians added fuel to fire. Everyone seemed to have an opinion on the film that missed its release date courtesy collective pressure from self-styled vigilantes.

Shadow over IFFI

With the new Information and Broadcasting Minister Smriti Irani in the saddle, the 48th edition of the International Film Festival of India, Goa, promised to be a star-studded affair. Big guns — right from SRK to Salman Khan and Amitabh Bachchan to Akshay Kumar — marked their presence. However, what made headlines was the deletion of duly selected films Durga and Nude. Sanalkumar Sasidharan, director of Durga, went to court which ruled in its favour. But neither the Kerala High Court order nor the resignation of Sujoy Ghosh, jury head of Indian Panorama section, forced the government to change its stance.

Legends retold

History repeats itself, at least on the small screen, and all the time. Historical legends such as Maharaja Ranjit Singh and Porus came alive. Porus, a visual spectacle, matched Baahubali in scale and is going strong. Amid the pantheon of 33 crore devi-devta , television can never fall short of mythological characters. Mahakali — Anth Hi Aarambh Hai and Karmaphal Daata Shani remained perennial favourites.

In the news

Exit ‘sanskari’ chief, enter adman, lyricist

It was an exit that cine buffs and votaries of artistic freedom were waiting for with bated breath. CBFC chief Pahlaj Nihalani stepped down and made way for noted lyricist and ad guru Prasoon Joshi. Joshi hasn’t had any run-ins with filmmakers, but he has failed to make an impression as of yet.

‘Lady-oriented’

It was a film that ruffled scissor-happy Pahlaj Nihalani, the then CBFC chief. Alankrita Shrivastava’s Lipstick Under My Burkha was refused certification on the grounds that were downright ludicrous. The Film Certification Appellate Tribunal came to the rescue of the makers and cleared the film. How India is changing was not only evident in the film that showed the repressed sexual desires of women from small towns, but also the fact that audiences lapped it up. 

Punjab in Bollywood 

Diljit Dosanjh followed up his Bollywood debut in Udta Punjab with a consummate performance in Phillauri in 2017. This year, singer Guru Randhawa struck gold too. Two of his tracks, Teinu suit suit karda and Ban ja tu meri rani, featured in Hindi Medium and Tumhari Sulu respectively. Up next is singer-turned-actor Jassi Gill, who makes his debut with Sonakshi Sinha in 2018.

Fall from grace

It all started with accusations of decades of sexual misconduct against Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein. While the list of his victims has since been growing, many a Hollywood bigwig has joined Harvey’s hall of infamy, prominent among them being Kevin Spacey and Oliver Stone. Ripples were felt closer home too. Many joined the ‘me too’ chorus, but, no heads rolled here.