Beyond Bollywood - Beyond understanding Indian cinema
Some weeks ago in Stuttgart (Germany) the Bollywood and Beyond Film Festival has been
held. Half a week there have been many movies in 3 theaters, Indian cooking, a so-called bazaar, Indian cinema professionals like producers for discussion, and journalists - there could be nothing more for fans like us to have at such a festival. If i had ever wished such a festival, near me in Stuttgart, i’d wished it that way. Not to forget the movies there. This article concerns about the festival idea, the movies there and how the festival organization plays with these things.
This festival was thought as a place for cultural exchange, as they write at their homepage:
The aim of this initiative was to enrich the festival situation in the region. The goal of the festival “Bollywood and beyond” was, besides the promotion of the economic cooperation, to provide the viewers with an insight to the cultural diversity of a film industry which was then largely unknown in Germany.
(origin of quote here)
This changed these days in a special manner typical for Germans: Once Bollywood and Beyond, both equal weights as words in the header (but bollywood for promotional purpose written larger than beyond), changed to “only Beyond is good cinema”. Indian Commercial Cinema is not of interest for festival management. It is too profane. There is too less arts but too much business and too much what audience wants to see. Its a german speciallity to show your own intelligence, experience and abilitiy by denying mainstream and by denying others abilities. Or as its called:
Reviewer (and festival managers) are like eunuchs: They know how it works but still can’t do it themselves.
You goat about art house filme knowledge. Its a problem many film festivals have: They select cinema into public and commercial one on a side and intellectual one on the other side. Of course, you could decide that you only want to show art house movies. But its not fair for Bollywood to be the eponym for the festival and then call it not as good as intellectual management would like to be themselves.
And that is the point: Its nothing about the festivals reputation, but about managements own reputation.
On one hand they want big business with 10.000s of visitors. On the other hand they want to show their intellectual decision against mainstream. That’s false, in my opinion. You can decide in favor of this side, but you can’t have both in the same moment.
You can’t sell great movies like “Manasarovar” or “Daivanamathil” as Bollywood without lying to your audience. And, that’s the point, you can’t make a film festival “to provide the viewers with an insight to the cultural diversity of a film industry ” by denying Bolly/Kolly/Tolly/Mollywood. Art house is also a part of Indian cinema as Bollywood is. Both are such an important parts of Indian culture. You can’t deny indian stardom, Bollywoods colors, these always equal and really flat stories. That is Indian cinema too, that is Indians wannabe, somehow.
And of course you can’t - as German - decide - which part of a culture is worth to be shown. Thats the key: By showing your own intellect because you know - as the only one - which movie is worth to be shown, you also show bad understanding. That you don’t have understand anything.
And, for second, you also make some special festival to some arbitrary.
There is no real commercial Indian cinema festival worldwide. Why not?
Can’t we get people to less audience movies in the fairway of a blockbuster? Do we need to learn cultural exchange with a mallet?
The German Mainstream Community fears a festival without Bollywood. We love the Indian cinema, neither only Bollywood nor art house. And people visiting this festival see it the same way: Sold out? No movie was, was any? Only Krrish managed a 500 seat theater to be 3/4 full. Only Krrish managed a large auditorium. So tell me: Must art and intellect kill things people like for some personal reasons?
Its only one person with that view in Germany (i hope), the festival manager Mrs. Reiss. We don’t know which way Bollywood & Beyond will go. But we know that we don’t want it to go that way. International and national press only writes what is shown to them. About success in Germany and about a big festival.
But independent sources attested me that some cinema professionals don’t like that idea a lot.
Never forget: Cinema is both art and business. The same way is it with making a festival. Lets hope Mrs. Reiss will understand it some day.
(Thanks, S., for correcting my English)
Update: In my german blog festival manager reiss told one of my visitor to delete his post speaking about her failures in management. Else she spoke about further steps.
September 10th, 2006 at 7:31 pm
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September 11th, 2006 at 12:28 am
I think only one sentence of Ms. Reiss says everything: She explained that BEYOND is for all intellectual people. These kind of people don’t like BOLLYWOOD! That means with other words, that only stupid people like Bollywood movies?! With such an attitude they will never become as big as they want to be. Maybe they will see it next year if they don’t change their point of view…
September 11th, 2006 at 5:59 am
, that is typical for such people. it must be stupid people when these people don’t recognize the intellectual power of the festival management. other sentiments are almost stupid. its really sad.
September 11th, 2006 at 8:22 am
sorry, at your link to bna i miss a W at www.
September 11th, 2006 at 8:26 am
[…] Aus Zeitgründen verlink ich einfach mal zu den Bollywoodbloggers. In dem Artikel wird vor allen die Einstellung des Organisationsteams, allen voran Frau Reiss, besprochen. Was ich unbedingt bei dieser Gelegenheit ansprechen möchte, ist das Chaos vor Ort, die DVD-Abspielerei, insbesondere der Raubkopieskandal. Ich erinnere nur ganz kurz an die permanenten Programmänderungen, den fehlenden Informationsfluss, den leeren Basar, die leicht zu übersehende Fotoausstellung im Treppenhausflur, das zuerst verspätete Foodfestival, die tlw. langen Wartezeiten bei den Filmvorführungen (mich traf es mit 45 Minuten Verspätung gleich am ersten Tag bei den Shortfilms) usw. Wie im Eingangssatz gesagt, aus Zeitgründen kommt an dieser Stelle nicht mehr. […]
September 11th, 2006 at 9:05 am
thank you, maini. i’d corrected it.
maini writes in her blog about additional chaos i didn’t mention in my articles: they showed pirated dvds in festival programm and accused it that they have had the directos permission by telefon. the director was raj kapoor. nothing more to say.
September 11th, 2006 at 6:00 pm
I had no idea this event was such a mess, from what I read about it before it happened, I was sure it’d be great and I really wished I could go. It’s a shame because with so many great movies produced in India (in Bollywood and beyond), they could really make a fantastic festival with a very diverse programme. And the extra exhibitions, bazaars and everything are a great idea, if only they’d made it work properly. Let’s hope it improves with each passing year - in 3 or 4 years it should be perfect, and maybe I can visit Salzburg then
September 12th, 2006 at 2:19 pm
yes - the event was a mess! and i guess it gets worse year by year. last year i’ve been there and they had a lot of organization problems, the events such as “musical breakfast” were kind of hobby-made (two indian music scholars torturing j.s.bach with their violins), technical problems and so on. but sitting in an open air cinema it wasn’t too bad that swades needed nearly 4 hours because they had audio problems
. it had flair and the vibe war great. but this year it was horrible: less bollywood films, bad schedule (which means you couldn’d see ineteresting film because they overlapped half an hour or so), silly games before showing the film (which was already delayed), bazaar? it was a joke - showing some fan cards and so on … if it was the first festival of that kind at Stuttgart it would be okay. But saying they want to be the most important, the biggest Bollywood or Indian filmfestival in europe it is embarrassing!
September 12th, 2006 at 8:50 pm
thats marketing. and because this lies are going through media all around the world i decided to write about my (and many others) opinion about that at bollywoodbloggers. so some could understand that not all is at it is written in media relation.
but of course, maja, it was fun also for me, cause i have no cinema at my city showing bollywood movies i’d the chance to see them (and beyond, of course) there. the mixing is the best
September 12th, 2006 at 10:12 pm
For me the festival was definitely worth the expense and the journey. Not so much for the festival itself but rather because of the chance to meet lots of people and watch some great movies on the big screen. IMHO the problems were largely caused by the incredible disinterest the festival’s organizers had for the films themselves and for their audience. You wouldn’t believe the kind of snobbish treatment one had to put up with as soon as they noticed that you were a Bollywood fan … Basically I’m a very forgiving person IF I get to know why some things don’t work as planned but if all I get are weak excuses (as with the pirated DVD of Awaara … the alleged phone call to Raj Kapoor was the highlight of my day
) and the feeling that any input from the audience is discouraged I get very cranky indeed. Still, I guess I’ll be there next year …
September 13th, 2006 at 1:27 pm
thanks 4 posting on my log! was the book ‘Behind the Scenes of Hindi Cinema’ available on that festival in Stuttgart?
September 14th, 2006 at 6:04 am
sorry, it was not visible there for visitors (or i haven’t noticed it there)