Trust me; before it happens to you

Prologue

Well, I quite managed to make a come back of sorts, and was happy to see one more than half a dozen comments on my previous post. Well I surely deserve a pat on my back ;). So I have decided to continue my journey in the quest to become a versatile blogger. So it’s no more philosophy and no more cricket, well that doesn’t leave me with much of a choice, so I have decided its going to be bollywood this time. You can’t blame me for my lame thinking.

I am certainly not a bollywood basher, someone who hates the songs, running around trees, the melodrama, the emotion, the action (I could go on). Well I love bollywood as much as I love Hollywood, Its just that certain movies leave some impressions on you, that you occasionally tend to become judgmental and quick to shift loyalties.

Without wasting much of your time, Let me get straight to something, which has left an impression on me, an impression of a different kind. The most talented yet confused director RGV. I thought I would not do this, but the hype surrounding his latest movie Phoonk, and the very fact that, I managed to catch yet another RGV movie on the very first day couldn’t stop me from choosing to write about this consistently inconsistant Director-Writer.

I have come across countless blogs, interviews, articles, where RGV has been bashed, sometimes unpardonable, unethical, unsympathetic and ruthlessly by so called film critics, Well a bad movie attracts criticism, but with RGV criticism comes from all corners, Professional Critics, Amateur bloggers, my neighbor who watches a movie once in 6 months (that too a RGV Movie), colleagues, office boys…….RGV commends that kind of admiration, only which our crickets were used to for many years now..

I keep thinking about this time and again, like most Indian movie-buffs, on RGV’s consistently inconsistence approach to film making. How can a same person come up with movies like Company & Sarkar on one-hand and movies like Aag & Phoonk on the other. It is understood & obvious for artistes to fail occasionally; but they fail with grace, with stature, (in cricketing terms – Form is temporary; Class is permanent) however when RGV fails, he makes a fool of himself. That's what makes it so difficult to understand him. But it is worth trying, rather than ridicule and bash him up.

TRIVIA: Ram Gopal Varma becomes the first director in Hindi cinema to have three releases in three successive months in the same year. Sarkar Raj released in June, Contract in July and Phoonk in Aug 08

I am amazed at the speed at which RGV churns out movies out of his FACTORY is no less than the speed at which a refilling unit refills Soft drink bottles. The end result is Phoonk, the movie vanishes without a trace at the box office (this is no black magic)

People attribute this to RGV’s egoistic nature, (read his blogs/interviews), lack of vision, too many movies, some call him a psycho, and some call him a fool. The question is, “Who is a fool here?” Well the answer is simple and unanimous.

RGV is someone who has the vision to predict the outcome of a movie halfway into the production, and yet would not make any effort to change things, not because he is incapable of; but because he doesn’t want to. Yes, RGV is highly intellectual individual who not only knows to make movies, but also knows how to make mistakes and more importantly when to make them. Any of his half a dozen Underworld/Horror movies have not cost him more than 5 Crore of rupees. (Considering Sarkar Raj is a 30 Crore Movie)

A newcomer/B-Grade actor, half a dozen weird camera angles an old abandoned house, with a dozen chase sequences and horrific sound effects, a perfect potboiler for an RGV Movie, on which RGV himself has invested the least possible amount of time; because according to him it’s simply not worth it. Yes, it is wise to know where to invest your time and where not to, ditto with RGV. Not every movie is made with same intentions and same passion and same intelligence. Not because he cannot, but because he doesn’t want to. Half of RGV movies made today are out of obligations, obligations of all kinds, Financial Crisis, troublesome careers, boredom, arrogance, irresponsibility, but what we fail to realize is that, with the exception of his disastrous aag, all his other movies have managed to either break even or make marginal profits, (considering the low budgets). Is RGV squandering his brand & goodwill he has earned ? Only time will tell. Until then his movies will still continue to create the hype they normally do, and manage to earn him what he needs ( name, fame, obligations, arrogance, intelligence & Stupidity)

After Watching Phoonk, I certainly realized that I am under no obligation to watch anymore RGV movies, Inspite of answering so many “WHY” Questions, I am still clueless about these from his latest flick.

1) Why did the Dolls/Idols in the movie manage to bag more screen space than the actors ?
2) Why was RGV so stingy while picking the starcast of the movie, and ended up spending more on the idols/dolls, without a doubt I can bet the movie had more idols/dolls than actors ?
3) What was the role of the crow in the movie; male lead? baddie? Guest Appearance? Poor Editing ?
4) Is the maid going to be RGVs next pin-up girl after bagging the maximum screen space, amongst the actors
5) Why were the dream sequences in the movies scarier than the actual ones, (got to do anything with RGVs Nightmares ?)

I wish I could go on……but I certainly do not want to relive those moments.

PS: I truly admire RGV, I respect him for taking Indian Cinema beyond Karan Johars & Karwa Chauths, for getting rid of dancing sequences and ugly item numbers. He has every right to take people for a ride, as he is in the business of film making and cashing in on brand RGV FACTORY. It’s now up to the people and stand up and take those RGV Films seriously which RGV himself takes seriously.