Counterview: It churns out bilge

M F Husain might be 94 but still remains provocative. Sample what he had to say about Bollywood: it is merely a machine that churns our entertainment. He believes that besides a handful of films, Bollywood usually turns out bilge. He's quite right. Let's accept Bollywood for what it is: an industry that is good at making formulaic films that usually appeal to the lowest common denominator. How many times have we seen the same themes being replayed over and over again? Girl falls in love with a boy whom the girl's father hates, twins get separated at birth and rags to riches stories. There may be nothing wrong with that so long as the audience is lapping it up. But we shouldn't try and credit Bollywood with producing great or even good films. There are some who would argue that Bollywood has turned a new leaf, and there are plenty of interesting movies being made over the past few years. Yes, that's true to some extent. There has been a spate of 'crossover' films that aspire to break the shackles of formula and appeal to a sensible audience. But let's not give them more credit than due. Many of these are lifted from Hollywood and world cinema, including the songs that are the defining characteristic of Bollywood films. It's just that we've been used so long to seeing trash that even a half-decent plot seems like manna from heaven. Ever since the first feature film in Hindi was made in 1913, Bollywood has grown by leaps and bounds. It now produces many more movies than any other film industry, including Hollywood. But what have we to show for it by way of awards? No Bollywood film has ever won an Oscar. In so many years, only three Indian films have made it to the best foreign film shortlist. That's why we had the pathetic spectacle of the country going gaga over the multiple Oscar-winning Slumdog Millionaire, as if it were an Indian film.