Year of many many surprises

Nonika Singh

The only critic is a full house. — Rudolf Nureyev, choreographer

In 2019, Bollywood had every reason to gloat in numbers. The year began on a high note with Uri: The Surgical Strike in sync with the national sentiment, which was high on patriotism. The film went on to make nearly Rs250 crore. Kesari, Gully Boy, Luka Chuppi, Badla, Manikarnika and Total Dhamaal were declared bona fide hits; the sum total of box office collection stood at an enviable Rs1000 crore plus in the first quarter itself.

Well begun is half done, and more hits followed suit. No wonder, BJP minister Ravi Shankar Prasad mentioned, “Where is the recession when three movies have earned Rs120 crore in one day.” Of course, he withdrew his statement later but he wasn’t totally off the mark. 2019 has been a blockbuster year with Bollywood trumping recession and notching up a revenue of Rs3,700 crore in the first three quarters.

For every magnum opus like Ashutosh Gowarikar’s Panipat falling flat, there was a reason (Pati, Patni Aur Woh) to smile. Sleeper hits were as many. As has been the trend in the past few years, small-budget films like Chhichhore    have proved to be a far safer bet than star-studded extravaganzas like Kalank. Karan Johar’s Midas touch was wee-bit rusted and the much-hyped sequel to Student of the Year heralding the arrival of Tara Sutaria and Ananya Panday too was a damp squib. Yash Raj Films,YRF, however, won the War. Hrithik Roshan-Tiger Shroff alchemy was irresistible and Mardaani 2 touched a chord. Roshan’s bronzed look in Super 30 may have brought him sneer and snigger, but Hrithik Roshan, voted as Asia’s sexiest man of the decade in a UK poll, had no cause for heartburn. His Super 30 entered the Rs100 crore club while his War was simply unstoppable.

Numbers extraordinaire  

The success of films like Article 15 and The Tashkent Files not only took trade pundits by surprise but its makers too. The year, like the previous one, belonged to Ayushmann Khurrana. The critics’ darling and audiences’ favourite, he was an unlikely superstar.

With a record run of seven hits under his belt, the ever-relatable ordinary guy’s films once again collected extraordinary numbers. Two of his films, Bala and Dream Girl, had a dream run at the box office. The second also belonged to Shahid Kapoor, who also delivered another superhit Kabir Singh.

Courting controversy

Universally panned by critics, Kabir Singh once again opened the debate on toxic masculinity and became, without a doubt, the most heatedly debated film of the year. Playing the not-so-loveable lover boy Shahid defended the film with the same passion he etched onscreen.  A stoic defence of the film was also put up by its director Sandeep Reddy Vanga. Only he put his foot in his mouth in a chat show where he spoke of ‘liberty of slapping while in love.’ The film didn’t stop creating a buzz till the year rang out.

Yet another bee that buzzed without provocation was Rangoli Chandel. The self-appointed spokesperson of not just her sister Kangana Ranaut but all and sundry locked horns with many an actor, particularly  Taapsee Pannu. Thanks to her motormouth, Bollywood also debated ageism.

But then critical appreciation is only a minor factor. As Walt Disney had said, “We are not trying to entertain the critics. I’ll take my chances with the public.” Closer home, the makers of Housefull 4 dittoed similar sentiments, defied negative reviews and romped home to box office success. For an industry that relies heavily on remakes and sequels, nothing is more magical than numbers and the sound of cash registers ringing.

Over to the web

Indeed, entertainment now has a new name and address. Web has cast its net far and wide. The stupendous success of web series just was a case in point. While the net junkies waited with bated breath for the second season of Sacred Games, the real winner in 2019 was The Family Man. Pitting its director duo Raj Nidimoru and Krishna D.K in an exalted space, with measured tone and balanced point of view

on intelligence agencies, terror and terrorists, it became the number one family choice. Of course, the real face of Indian families was exposed by yet another talented combo of Zoya Akhtar and Reema Kagti.

Made in Heaven exposed the hypocrisy around Indian marriages with glee, gusto and empathy. If the first season of Sacred Games had put a transgender on centrestage, Made in Heaven brought homosexuality right under our noses, with no holds barred,

all the while tackling the all-too prevalent homophobia. The opinion on web series continued to gain credence in line with its increasing gravitas. Few differed with the near-unanimous vote in favour of web shows rating these as India’s best and also pointing out how these came from the uncensored streaming platforms. But, of course demand for censoring the web didn’t die out either. Will it soon become a chorus? With Netflix planning the big India push and ready to pump in Rs3,000 crore for local content and season two of both The Family Man and Made in Heaven in the offing, both sides (for and against curbs on web) are likely to up the ante.

But we are more concerned about raising the bar. Will OTT platforms continue to rewrite the rules? Martin Scorsese’s gangster drama The Irishman, watched by 26 million accounts world over in the first seven days of its release on Netflix, does point in the direction. In India, Netflix originals like Sushant Singh Rajput-starrer Drive, however, did not generate much traction. Response to other desi movies like Chopsticks and Rajmah Chawal, strictly made for streaming platforms, was tepid too and got an equally lukewarm response from the reviewers.

On the world stage

Stars sparred on political lines and films clashed week after week, but found real competition in Hollywood biggies. Director Martin Scorsese may have stirred the hornet’s nest when he dubbed Marvel movies “Amusement parks,” and not quite cinema, but the Indian fans of Marvel Cinematic Universe had already given their verdict.

Avengers: Endgame, the biggest movie of all time ($2.797 billion at the worldwide box office) did a roaring business of more than Rs350 crore, thus becoming the first Hollywood film to enter the Rs300 crore club in India. Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker, the most profitable comic film ever, despite limited screens (in India) went on to collect Rs50 crore in the Indian market itself. That India is a huge market for Hollywood, and not just for the English-speaking uppity, was understood by studio honchos in the US. They roped in Shah Rukh Khan and his son Aryan to dub for the animated characters of Mufasa and Simba in Disney’s The Lion King. The film did quite well, along with Captain Marvel and Spiderman: Far From Home.

Our very own Mighty Little Bheem, a computer-animated children’s TV series, was watched in 27 million homes outside India.

In the thick of things

Mr Dependable, Akshay Kumar, lived up to his name as well as his new sobriquet Bharat Kumar. Of his three hits, Kesari and Mission Mangal dripped with patriotic fervour. But the actor, with a squeaky clean reputation of being a nice guy, grabbed more eyeballs for his “apolitical” interview with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. While his mango question

to the PM tickled netizens, his stance on protests by students of Jamia Millia Islamia University made many see red. One enraged Twitterati called him spineless and the ever-vocal Anurag Kashyap agreed.

‘Remark’able 

Kartik Aaryan had a bittersweet year.

The master of delightful monologues delivered hits with Luka Chuppi and Pati, Patni Aur Woh.

But his marital rape remark in the trailer of the film landed him in a soup.

The objectionable dialogue was edited out of the film and the viewers decided to forgive and forget.

Even though his Pati, Patni Aur Woh clashed with Panipat, it emerged a clear winner.

Game point

A whole lot of fans of the Game of Thrones’ series in India may have agreed with those who wanted a remake of the disappointing finale, but nothing could stop them from following the series. Such was the popularity of the show that Hotstar streamed the uncensored version of the series, especially for its Indian fans.

Man of the moment

India’s international run was grounded. Gully Boy, the official entry to the Oscars, fell out of the race. The much-anticipated nomination of Sacred Games and Lust Stories at the International Emmy Awards drew a blank. Meanwhile, Nawazuddin Siddiqui got his moment under the sun when UK’s McMafia, starring him, secured a win in the Best Drama Series category.

When a cause wins

Oscar glory may have continuously eluded us. But the real silver lining came early on in the year when co-producer Guneet Monga walked with an Oscar trophy for the best documentary short. Directed by Iranian-American director Rayka Zehtabchi, the emphatic win of Period: End of Sentence was significant for more reason than one. The film, which was set in Hapur, UP, brought to fore the conversation around menstruation as well as the efforts of Arunachalam Muruganantham, inventor of the low-cost sanitary pad machines.