Lessons from Bollywood’s Golden Globes

The Golden Globe Awards, like other coveted awards and film festivals, aim to celebrate such beliefs and journeys. The Brutalist premiered at the Venice Film Festival in September and won trophies for Best Actor (Adrien Brody), Best Director (Brady Corbet) and Best Drama. The epic about a Jewish architect who survived the Holocaust and immigrated to America may now be emerging as a front-runner this awards season, but Corbett says it didn’t start out that way. It is said that it is not.

Director Corbett spilled the beans in his acceptance speech, saying that the film was not considered a box office success, and that “no one was asking for a three-and-a-half hour movie about a midcentury designer.” Ta. “I’ve been told that this film can’t be distributed, that no one will come to see it, that the film won’t do well, and I don’t begrudge that. But I use this as an opportunity to encourage the filmmakers. I would like to… Movies don’t exist without filmmakers,” he said.

Box office anxiety often determines the nature and fate of a film. Indian filmmakers who try to tread an unconventional path often face these concerns. In a Reddit chat, Kapadia said the reason he made All We Imagine As Light the way he did was to “free us from the baggage of the market.” She goes on to say, “Co-producers, distributors, and sales agents do not influence my decisions. To me, the films I make are real and genuine.” Such an attitude towards filmmaking. may not be realistic for industry analysts, especially after the phenomenal business that films like ‘Street 2’ and ‘Pushpa 2’ have done. The former reportedly grossed around Rs 850 crore worldwide, while Pushpa 2 reportedly earned around Rs 1800 crore worldwide.

Fortunately, in the world of film, the lure of money doesn’t always trump the desire for excellence in artistry, craft, and storytelling. Recognition and awards will continue to be a big draw for filmmakers and artists. That’s why Demi Moore was disappointed when producers called her a “popcorn actress” despite achieving worldwide success with her films in the 1990s. She believed that she could make films that were “successful and made a lot of money,” but that she would never be recognized as a great artist. “That started to eat away at me over time,” the actor said after winning the Globe for Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Motion Picture (Musical or Comedy) for The Substance.

The expression ‘Popcorn’ is meant to be a crowd-pleaser and is the type of film that dominates the Indian market. These are made with commerce in mind and are useful for star systems. Even though films like Kiran Rao’s Laapata Ladies and Shuchi Talati’s Girls Will Be Girls have been widely acclaimed, they have not succumbed to market demand and brought in new actors. Despite casting, Indian films always prioritize box office revenue.

But lately, Hindi films have struggled to find success at the box office. ‘Baby John’, the last Hindi release of 2024, is a remake of the Tamil version ‘Theri’ (2016) Remakes of South Indian films and use of metaphors from Tamil and Telugu films have disastrous results It turns out that this is true. This eroded the identity and freshness/originality of Hindi films. Compare this to how Malayalam cinema has maintained its originality by prioritizing narrative and the art of storytelling.

Hindi filmmakers not only need to let go of the fear that art and experimentation will get in the way of commerce, they need to take a leaf out of their books. Or, for some reassurance, play a clip of director Jon M. Chu’s speech after winning the first Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture and Box Office. Choose Wicked, starring Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, opened with a record $114 million and went on to set several new box office records. “Even in a time when pessimism and cynicism rule the planet, we can still make art that is a fundamental act of optimism, of empowerment and expression of joy,” Chu said. .

alaka.sahani@expressindia.com