In many ways Hrishikesh Mukherjee was the doyen of middle class Hindi cinema. His characters hopped on to the local bus, had normal conversations at the dinner table and dealt with the simple dilemmas of every day life. In Guddi, Jaya Bhaduri played a young girl infatuated with a movie star. In Abhimaan Amitabh Bachchan played a singer unable to come to terms with his wife's success. And in Khoobsurat Rekha was a fun-loving girl who lightens up the mood by infusing fun into the lives of her married sister's new family.

But there are very few filmmakers today who seem to find any challenge in tackling simple stories about simple people.

"Indian cinema has been taken over by the second generation of Bollywood who have no knowledge of life. They've lived life in Juhu and for holidays they've got London. They have no idea," filmmaker Sudhir Mishra says.

That is an accusation even the younger filmmakers will find hard to deny considering the simple stories that Hrishikesh Mukherjee was drawn to.

There is no presence of the middle class in the recent hits like Karan Johar’s Kabhi Alvidaa Na Kehna which is set in New York and Vishal Bharadwaj’s Omkara which depicts the rustic landscape of UP.

Source: ibnlive 

"Unfortunately it is true in the sense that what now claims to be the so-called middle class film is now the most glamourised and distorted view of the middle class. Branded that we are the mostly confused bunch," filmmaker Nagesh Kukunoor says.

However, there are a few notable exceptions like Kundan Shah's Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa about a no-good youngster, Priyadarshan's Hera Pheri and Yeh Tera Ghar Yeh Mera Ghar which came close to replicating reality. And even Munnabhai MBBS, the delightful bittersweet comedy set in a medical school.

But sadly these examples are few. The truth is that Bollywood today seems focused on escapism and it's aspiration that sells. Who wants to see stories about you and me?

Be first to comment this article

Only registered users can write comments.
Please login or register.

Powered by AkoComment Tweaked Special Edition v.1.4.4