The very title of this blog baffles me. Aren’t films supposed to be mediums through which concerned individuals voice their opinions on something? Haven’t we seen, down the years, eminent film-makers, theatre personalities… from the likes of Utpal Dutt, Satyajit Ray, to controversially correct Bergmans and Almodovars to our very own Michael Moore who has effectively carried on his incessant effort to bring out the loopholes in President Bush’s government, strike out at important matters that needs to be commented upon? So movies, to me, is something that is entertaining, controversial and at the same time, awakening! After all, who can forget ‘Rang de Basanti’ in a jiffy?
So I was a little skeptical when people started boycotting the 13th Kolkata Film Festival for the sole reason that it is being organized by the CPM minister who also (unfortunately) happens to be our chief minister! Films are something that should exist beyond the petty realms of party politics and jabbering of some loony old fools! Alright, it’s being organized by that man, but still, he isn’t the one who has produced or directed the films, has he? If that would’ve been the case, I most definitely would’ve condemned the entire event. But since that is not the case, I must speak in favor of the movies… not the festival organized by the biggest CPM cadre of them all or anything else… but the movies that’ll be shown in the theatres.
Jean Luc-Goddard… or Solanos… what has he got to do with Nandigram, frankly? Anything at all? Didn’t think so! So I guess I’ve made my point quite clear! And the theatres the movies are screened in, they were actually built by government’s money… which happens to be the money of the tax-payers (if I’ve got my civics right)… our money! So the way I look at it, as far as I’m concerned, I went to see movies of great film-makers in our theatres… forget the festival, forget the CPM minister who organized it… it’s movies that I’m talking about!
But as I say these words, I am compelled to comment upon the move of the eminent film-makers and so-called intellectuals (Buddhijibis, not Buddhajibis) who decided to boycott the event! Well, I support their action whole-heartedly, and I have my reasons!
You see, when someone elevates himself into the position of being referred to as an intellectual, one must do things that should justify his/her title. As the CPM attack came at the dawn of this year’s fest, it was only natural for them, people like Aparna Sen, Riruporno Ghosh and the others, to boycott the event as a sign of protest! Kind of like Bratya Basu and the others had done in the wake of the March 14 massacre! If they had not done so and had continued to show up at the Buddha-organized event, even after voicing their discontent over the government, the media and the common folks would certainly have labeled them double-faced! And that (seemingly) would not have been far from the truth, as the so-called 2nd group of intellectual’s “CPM supported” rally proved! And I must defend the real intellectuals’ move to peacefully rally past Nandan (for which they were shamefully beaten up and arrested by the CM’s watchdogs). It was a way of exposing to the people from around the city and the world (meaning the foreign guests and guests from other parts of our nation) the dirty linen in the CM’s apparently clean closet! And unfortunately, the CM’s company of cronies, including the likes of big-mouth Bimans, Binoys and Subhashes and their bosom pals at the centre, is yet to come up with a detergent powder strong enough to clean that monstrous dirt away… Whenever I put forth this point, I generally get a reaction like: “Why would the outsiders have to know about what’s going on in our state? They are visitors, aren’t they?” I respond to that by saying that those so-called outsiders have the same right to know and comment upon our state of affairs as we have of commenting upon the I.Q. of Bush (In his case, I.Q. stands for Idiocy Quotient… so Bush has a pretty high I.Q., you see!) or the state of affairs in Cuba or Pakistan! And we do love to ridicule Bush, Musharraff, don’t we?
Maybe I’m not completely truthful out here… I mean, I left out a rather selfish reason for why I couldn’t (even though I had really wanted to at first) boycott the Film Fest! You see, the intellectuals have got the opportunity of watching world-class movies in several places around the world, whereas someone like me has to resort to our film fest for that! So…
And I’ll end this blog with a reference to the majority of the press and ‘electronic media’. The attack and counter-attack (between the media and the party at the helm) has turned out to be disturbingly entertaining! And I must commend the ways in which the media (especially Star Ananda) has reacted to the threats and attacks by the CM’s party! Apparently, the media has some funny and delightfully sarcastic intellectuals among their numbers! A great job!
Kudos must go to the high court and the governor for sticking up for the truth in face of formidable adversities! The ruling party is proving time and time again that they have absolutely no efficiency… in their handling of the Central Reserve Police Force, saving their hitmen from the grasp of their police force, reacting to comments in the press, reacting to the constitutional head and the court’s comments and even through the comments made by themselves… I mean, how cracked can someone be to say ‘Our men paid them back in their own coins’ in front of the camera? That’s something someone like Narendra Modi is expected to boast about when he’s having a private chat with his closest friends… that too, after he has thoroughly searched all of them to see if any of his friends is carrying a secret video camera or voice recorder… working undercover for Tehelka! How stupid can one be to say ‘I would’ve ditched the rallying people in the sea’? Especially when it’s a rally of highly revered men and women we are talking about…
Well, ending on a hope that REAL peace is restored in Nandigram, and the guilty are brought to the courts… it’s good to see the lawyers, scum as they’re rumored to be, prove ‘em wrong and rise up against the injustice…
Signing off,
Actually, refusing to sign off,
-Jagannath (Jesse)
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