For an industry that has always peddled dreams, Bollywood is waking up to the power of real-life stories. An Indian villager stuck in a Pakistani jail, a brave air hostess, India’s cricket team captain and a wrestler who pushed his daughters to greatness – 2016 will see their lives make it to the big screen.
Raja Krishna Menon’s “Airlift” opens in cinemas on Friday and chronicles another real-life event — 170,000 Indians airlifted from Kuwait during the Gulf War in the largest human evacuation in history.
“There is so much good material all around. It makes sense to tap that,” said Vikram Malhotra, whose Abundantia Entertainment co-produced “Airlift”.
“When Raja came to me with his script, I knew immediately that this was a film that had to be made,” he said.
In 2016, Bollywood will see biopics of cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni, former captain Mohammad Azharuddin, and wrestler Mahavir Phogat who coached his daughters to wrestling glory. Aamir Khan plays Phogat in “Dangal“, which is slated for a Christmas release.
Bollywood wasn’t always enamoured with real life. It’s heroes were all-conquering, leading ladies danced in chiffon saris in sub-zero temperatures, and 45-year-old actors played college students.
But much has changed over the past few years, especially after the success of films such as “The Dirty Picture” – based on the life of a soft-porn actress – and “No One Killed Jessica”, about the infamous Jessica Lal murder case.
One reason for the glut of real-life stories could be that Bollywood is running out of ideas.
The last two years have seen big-ticket movies flounder at the box office despite sticking to the action, romance and comedy formula that has long been a staple for Hindi movies.
Last year, Bollywood audiences were treated to a biopic on serial killer Charles Sobhraj and a retelling of the Aarushi Talwar murder case. But the floodgates will open in 2016.
Ad director Ram Madhvani makes his Bollywood debut in February with “Neerja“, about a 22-year-old air hostess who died saving passengers during the 1983 hijacking of a Pan Am aircraft. Director Omung Kumar will direct former Miss World Aishwarya Rai Bachchan in his May release “Sarabjit“, the story of an Indian man who was accused of being a spy by Pakistan and died in prison there in 2013.
Sushant Singh Rajput plays India’s one-day cricket captain Dhoni in a biopic directed by Neeraj Pandey. Emraan Hashmi plays former cricket captain Azharuddin in Anthony D’Souza’s “Azhar“. Both films will open in cinemas in the second half of 2016.
“There is something about real-life stories that is challenging, but is also immensely satisfying,” said Rajkumar Hirani, one of India’s most successful film-makers.
Hirani’s next project is a biopic of actor Sanjay Dutt, whose five-year prison term for firearms offences ends in 2016.
“I have been wanting to make this film for a while, but it takes a lot of preparation and work,” said Hirani. “We hope to go on the floors (by the) middle of this year.”
Bollywood does tend to take cinematic liberties even with films inspired by real-life events. But Hirani said it doesn’t matter as long as the film doesn’t veer too far away from its subject.
Film-makers rarely resist the temptation to insert a song-and-dance sequence in films. Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra’s biopic of athlete Milkha Singh showed him dancing on a beach in Australia, while Omung Kumar’s retelling of boxer Mary Kom’s life added events that didn’t happen.
“We don’t want to compromise on authenticity, of course,” said Malhotra, co-producer of “Airlift”. “But a little cinematic liberty in the interest of cinema is par for the course.” – Reuters
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