ABU DHABI // Most Indian big-budget films failed at the box office this year, taking with it Bollywood's nascent attempt at diversifying into genres other than musical love stories. In spite of Bollywood's best and most extravagant efforts, the Indian audience and the diaspora continue to prefer the formulaic song-and-dance films that incorporate a little bit of everything. "They want a new story but they don't always want a different kind of film," said Rachel Dwyer, a professor of Indian culture and cinema at the University of London. "They like the song and dance but they want a story, and the only way you are going to get something good is by paying the scriptwriters good money. There is not much attention to the script. You need good music and good stars but you need something beyond that to keep people interested."
Bollywood, a popular term used to define the Hindi film-making industry based in Mumbai, makes more than 1,000 films a year. However, some of the biggest flops of the year had some of the biggest budgets, and were backed by well-known production houses. Films such as Love Story 2050, a foray into science fiction but cloaked in the conventional love saga, and Roadside Romeo, an animated film, were among the notable disappointments for critics and film distributors.
As big projects flopped, lesser-known films with smaller budgets flourished. Understated scripts, such as the journey of a dyslexic boy in Taare Zaamen Par (Stars on Earth) and A Wednesday - about a plot to blow up parts of Mumbai - did better than expected. "It proved that audiences wanted to see well-made films which not only entertained but which were thought-provoking," said Anil Sinanan, a London-based film critic. "Big stars did not necessarily guarantee box-office hits. Audiences were intolerant of too much reliance on style and wanted some substance."
A number of high-profile partnerships between Hollywood and the Indian film industry were announced, especially to strengthen international distribution, reaching out to a growing expatriate group and to enhance production values. Although Saawariya (Beloved) did not impress audiences, it was distributed worldwide by Sony Pictures. Warner Bros distributed Saas, Bahu aur Sensex (Mother-in-Law, Daughter-in-Law, and the Stock Market).
And while it remains to be seen what a collaboration between Steven Spielberg and Anil Ambani, the owner of Reliance Communications, will bring, it is a partnership that has opened the movie markets to each other, especially for Hollywood films, which have been unable to penetrate the Indian market. Not all the films made in India are released abroad. Although international distributors for Indian films follow all the releases in India, only two to five films are selected weekly for international audiences, said Mahi Golchin-Depala, managing director for Phars Films, the company which distributes Bollywood titles in the Middle East.
Audiences in the UAE, while echoing some of the sentiments of their Indian counterparts, stuck with the stars, which led to the success of films such as Jodhaa Akbar, with Hrithik Roshan and Aishwarya Rai. The film in fact was more successful abroad than it was in India. Jodhaa Akbar, a controversial film about a Moghul king and a Hindu princess, was a part-historical, part-romantic story of Hindu-Muslim love which also looked closely at the role of prominent Muslims in Indian history. It was banned in the state of Rajasthan. In Andhra Pradesh, protesters chanted in front of cinema halls and tore down posters, forcing the theatres to close.
However, in its opening weekend in Abu Dhabi the film collected Dh1.7 million (US$463,000). It also had one of the biggest openings in the United States for an Indian film - taking $1.6 million during the Valentine's Day weekend. Industry observers agree that there is a difference in how overseas Indians view cinema, even though a large part of the audiences in countries such as England and the UAE are Muslim.
"The more controversy around the film, the more they are curious about it. They read about it and they know exactly what is going on," Ms Golchin-Depala said. With the worldwide economic crisis, there might not be the kind of bold experimentation in 2009 that Bollywood undertook this year. Instead, it is likely to stick to what it knows best: giddy romances and soft comedies with lively song-and-dance sequences.
"I believe they will go back to the way they used to make films in India. It's the 'leave your brains at home' kind of films, where people want escapism. Upcoming releases already point to that," said Ms Golchin-Depala. An example is Chandni Chowk to China, to be released in January, which tells the story of a simple Indian cook who is mistaken for a famous warrior in China. The year seems to have ended with relief for the big production houses. The financial crisis and recent attacks in Mumbai appear not to have affected Bollywood in the last quarter.
Films such as Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi with Shah Rukh Khan and Ghajini, starring Aamir Khan, are doing well in India and abroad. The Shah Rukh film sold 125,000 tickets across the UAE during its first week, beating previous first-week openings for Bollywood films this year. It was closely followed by Aamir Khan's film, which within four days of its release exceeded all other films this year in the region, Ms Golchin-Depala said.
"Big names will continue to lure audiences to the box office, especially abroad, and especially in the UAE," she said. sbhattacharya@thenational.ae