Sir
It is refreshing not to see Sonia or Vajpayee on the cover page but it is hard to say that Indian film industry has matured enough. Until there are song and dance sequences and unless the theme of a film revolves around LOVE between an all-perfect Hero and Heroin exists it is hard to say that Indian films of any language for that matter are nowhere near maturity. The difference between earlier and recent films is – instead of a very shy theatrical expressions and Bharatnatyam fusion dance, it is casual stripping and pub dance with oil, water and make-up used extensively that’s in vogue. I can barely recall films that do not have “Pyar, Mohabbat,” as its main theme, only the circumstance around which the Hero and Heroin succeed or fail in their love differs.

Bollywood is full of nonsense. They live in their own world, far from reality. The choices they offer is very limited. All the stars have huge egos. They won't even act like human beings. They have been dumping thrash into the market for many decades, right from Raj Kapoor days. No wonder, middle east and many countries around the world are seeing a drastic drop in audience for Indian movies lately and a huge surge for Hollywood movies. When are we going to watch some sci-fi movies, kids movies, cartoon movies, historical movies and all kind of stuff. When are these Bollywood guys going to improve their technical skills, graphics etc.. I am sick and tired of watching all those repeated love stories or movies with doesn't even have a story in the first place. Too much makeup or glamorous looks is not a substitute for real action and entertainment. Songs and dances in a movie is a big turn off for growing number of audiences. They don't even make sense.

The impression I got from reading this article and the other linked ones after it is that of a conspicuous negative strain. It describes the trends, procedures, effects of contemporary film directors, music directors but concludes the discussion on some seriously negative note. This may be sarcastic but it offends either the older or newer version of Bollywood. There is definitely a different cinema germinating in Bollywood and it certainly feels good. It will only get better with experimentation and fusion with the conventional or known Bollywood.

The impression I got from reading this article and the other linked ones after it is that of a conspicuous negative strain. It describes the trends, procedures, effects of contemporary film directors, music directors but concludes the discussion on some seriously negative note. This may be sarcastic but it offends either the older or newer version of Bollywood. There is definitely a different cinema germinating in Bollywood and it certainly feels good. It will only get better with experimentation and fusion with the conventional or known Bollywood.

Bollywood is full of nonsense. They live in their own world, far from reality. The choices they offer is very limited. All the stars have huge egos. They won't even act like human beings. They have been dumping thrash into the market for many decades, right from Raj Kapoor days. No wonder, middle east and many countries around the world are seeing a drastic drop in audience for Indian movies lately and a huge surge for Hollywood movies. When are we going to watch some sci-fi movies, kids movies, cartoon movies, historical movies and all kind of stuff. When are these Bollywood guys going to improve their technical skills, graphics etc.. I am sick and tired of watching all those repeated love stories or movies with doesn't even have a story in the first place. Too much makeup or glamorous looks is not a substitute for real action and entertainment. Songs and dances in a movie is a big turn off for growing number of audiences. They don't even make sense.

Sir
It is refreshing not to see Sonia or Vajpayee on the cover page but it is hard to say that Indian film industry has matured enough. Until there are song and dance sequences and unless the theme of a film revolves around LOVE between an all-perfect Hero and Heroin exists it is hard to say that Indian films of any language for that matter are nowhere near maturity. The difference between earlier and recent films is – instead of a very shy theatrical expressions and Bharatnatyam fusion dance, it is casual stripping and pub dance with oil, water and make-up used extensively that’s in vogue. I can barely recall films that do not have “Pyar, Mohabbat,” as its main theme, only the circumstance around which the Hero and Heroin succeed or fail in their love differs.

So, What Is New?
The impression I got from reading your cover story The New Bollywood (June 7) was the presence of a conspicuous negative strain. It outlines the trends, procedures and effects of contemporary filmmaking/film and music directors but concludes the discussion on a somewhat sceptical note. There’s definitely a different cinema germinating in Bollywood and it has a feelgood to it. Only with experimentation and fusion with the conventional or known Bollywood will it sustain and improve.
Amit Phatak, New York, US

New Bollywood! Give me a break. Outlook, in its usual premature giddiness, is painting a distorted picture. I’m a novice scriptwriter who has been making the rounds of Bollywood and am sickened by the sycophancy and nepotism in the industry. Perhaps my screenplay is terrible but getting people to even read it is an exercise in futility. There are simply no avenues, platforms or forums for new talent. And the effect shows in the quality of our films. How many globally critically acclaimed movies has the industry produced in the last few years? Path-breaking directors? Novel storylines? Don’t be fooled, it’s the same old garbage, in slicker garbage cans!
Narayan Mani, on e-mail

Having followed Anurag Kashyap’s work over the years, from his script for Satya to his directorial debut Paanch, one can understand what he and a hazaar other filmmakers are seeking. Just a departure from the current state of things (We’re All Running a Donkey’s Race). Indeed, if the Indian film has to make its presence felt abroad, sooner or later it will have to be on pure storytelling and not the wedding videos that bigger Indian filmmakers or filmmakers of Indian origin are cashing in on. And that too before the genre ‘crossover’ becomes yet another crossing fad and a butt of ridicule. It’s B2B time for Bollywood, that is, Back to the Basics.
Vishwajyoti Ghosh, New Delhi

Your tracing of beauty in India cinema (Devika Rani to Aishwarya: The Whole Shebang) completely sidelined the ’60s, as it did Sadhna, the beautiful style icon of that decade. Be it the bangs that came to be known as the Sadhna cut or the fitted churidars she brought into mainstream fashion in Waqt, Sadhna was the most copied actress of her time. She brought a western chic into Indian cinema; she was like luscious peach ice-cream when other actresses were rotund gulab-jamuns!
P. Prahlad, on e-mail

The trend towards movies getting more and more explicit is not surprising (Steamer Rides). It is cinema retaining its essence while keeping up with the times. All one needs to take care of now is to have a story and script to match so that a film is not reduced to a mere strip show.
Milind Kher, on e-mail

No matter how much one bares or dares, Bollywood can never be out of the woods. The wiles of the wild plagiarists may be food for the copycats but will continue to be fodder for even the remotely Indian psyches. If our culture, tradition, heritage and what not, as we often feign to boast of, still meant something to us, the transgression of the name Hollywood would not have decorated the Dadasaheb legacy. When the name’s pirated, the game has to be X-rated. Your Bollywood bonanza could only promote the cause of soft porn for improving the news media’s box-office returns.
Mrinmoy Prasad Goswami, Nagaon, Assam

Indian audiences need to grow up. The observations in your article vis-vis The New Bollywood scenario are so dull and so played out as if to convince the layman that there is something out there waiting to be discovered. The average moviegoer is looking for some entertainment, delectable contours pleasing to the eye, froth and frolic, chocolate-faced actors emoting fuschia-coloured dreams that don’t match reality. For thrills, they want gore, violence and vulgarity. Cluelessness is the genre. It is a far cry from the artistic excellence of the cinema of the past which delved into the complex machinations of the human mind while gripping the imagination and capturing the human spirit.
Chitra Panicker Amarnath, New Delhi

Your cover story on Bollywood was interesting. The likes of Ajay Devgan, Ram Gopal Verma, Preity Zinta have electrified Bollywood with their unconventional acting and directing. But the film that paved the way for this renaissance was Verma’s Company, the highlight of which was how the police was portrayed, played to perfection by Mohanlal. Ever since, inspired clones have made an appearance as in Khakee and now in Dev.
Joseph K. Joseph, Kochi

So, What Is New?
The impression I got from reading your cover story The New Bollywood (June 7) was the presence of a conspicuous negative strain. It outlines the trends, procedures and effects of contemporary filmmaking/film and music directors but concludes the discussion on a somewhat sceptical note. There’s definitely a different cinema germinating in Bollywood and it has a feelgood to it. Only with experimentation and fusion with the conventional or known Bollywood will it sustain and improve.
Amit Phatak, New York, US

New Bollywood! Give me a break. Outlook, in its usual premature giddiness, is painting a distorted picture. I’m a novice scriptwriter who has been making the rounds of Bollywood and am sickened by the sycophancy and nepotism in the industry. Perhaps my screenplay is terrible but getting people to even read it is an exercise in futility. There are simply no avenues, platforms or forums for new talent. And the effect shows in the quality of our films. How many globally critically acclaimed movies has the industry produced in the last few years? Path-breaking directors? Novel storylines? Don’t be fooled, it’s the same old garbage, in slicker garbage cans!
Narayan Mani, on e-mail

Having followed Anurag Kashyap’s work over the years, from his script for Satya to his directorial debut Paanch, one can understand what he and a hazaar other filmmakers are seeking. Just a departure from the current state of things (We’re All Running a Donkey’s Race). Indeed, if the Indian film has to make its presence felt abroad, sooner or later it will have to be on pure storytelling and not the wedding videos that bigger Indian filmmakers or filmmakers of Indian origin are cashing in on. And that too before the genre ‘crossover’ becomes yet another crossing fad and a butt of ridicule. It’s B2B time for Bollywood, that is, Back to the Basics.
Vishwajyoti Ghosh, New Delhi

Your tracing of beauty in India cinema (Devika Rani to Aishwarya: The Whole Shebang) completely sidelined the ’60s, as it did Sadhna, the beautiful style icon of that decade. Be it the bangs that came to be known as the Sadhna cut or the fitted churidars she brought into mainstream fashion in Waqt, Sadhna was the most copied actress of her time. She brought a western chic into Indian cinema; she was like luscious peach ice-cream when other actresses were rotund gulab-jamuns!
P. Prahlad, on e-mail

The trend towards movies getting more and more explicit is not surprising (Steamer Rides). It is cinema retaining its essence while keeping up with the times. All one needs to take care of now is to have a story and script to match so that a film is not reduced to a mere strip show.
Milind Kher, on e-mail

No matter how much one bares or dares, Bollywood can never be out of the woods. The wiles of the wild plagiarists may be food for the copycats but will continue to be fodder for even the remotely Indian psyches. If our culture, tradition, heritage and what not, as we often feign to boast of, still meant something to us, the transgression of the name Hollywood would not have decorated the Dadasaheb legacy. When the name’s pirated, the game has to be X-rated. Your Bollywood bonanza could only promote the cause of soft porn for improving the news media’s box-office returns.
Mrinmoy Prasad Goswami, Nagaon, Assam

Indian audiences need to grow up. The observations in your article vis-vis The New Bollywood scenario are so dull and so played out as if to convince the layman that there is something out there waiting to be discovered. The average moviegoer is looking for some entertainment, delectable contours pleasing to the eye, froth and frolic, chocolate-faced actors emoting fuschia-coloured dreams that don’t match reality. For thrills, they want gore, violence and vulgarity. Cluelessness is the genre. It is a far cry from the artistic excellence of the cinema of the past which delved into the complex machinations of the human mind while gripping the imagination and capturing the human spirit.
Chitra Panicker Amarnath, New Delhi

Your cover story on Bollywood was interesting. The likes of Ajay Devgan, Ram Gopal Verma, Preity Zinta have electrified Bollywood with their unconventional acting and directing. But the film that paved the way for this renaissance was Verma’s Company, the highlight of which was how the police was portrayed, played to perfection by Mohanlal. Ever since, inspired clones have made an appearance as in Khakee and now in Dev.
Joseph K. Joseph, Kochi