A MADE-IN-INDIA HEART

A MADE-IN-INDIA HEART

Bollywood smitten with ‘going-foreign’ needs an honest introspection. Swiss alpine and London subway are outdated but not an out-of-context dance sequence shot abroad.How are Indian film directors taking Angelina Jolie shooting in Pune?
Definitely the director of Mighty Heart did not choose India for its sweating temperatures and unclean roads. Was it the ‘Going India’ tag that drove the crew here? Going by the common reference the only reason could be to explore India (read Discover India.)
So Angelina’s Mighty Heart may stir many a heart. As the film’s line producer Arti Surendranath puts it: "I want them (foreigners) to see India beyond the camel and elephant rides and cows crossing the street! Every Indian unknowingly harvests the urge to show foreigners India is far beyond poverty, history, population, bandhs and defeat in polls!"
Despite the essential infrastructure, super technicians and varied locales, it is a shame that not much international film work is done here, thanks to red tapism and laid-back attitude of Indians, who take pleasure in boasting about abroad visits. Mighty Heart is really a great venture but we cannot rule out Hollywood as a protagonist trying to catch the pulse of Indian market. The film is a real life story about Daniel Pearl, a journalist killed by terrorists.
The story is real, cast is fantastic, camera will be majestic and above all it is made in India. There is no reason that the movie will not bag an Oscar and no wonder if it is nominated for Filmfare award.

Wake up Bollywood. Not all movies shot abroad deserve Oscar. Remember Pather Panchali, which was acclaimed the universal best film when majority of the Indian population was illiterate.
And Satyajit Ray, who won the Lifetime Achievement Oscar in 1992, did not swear by squeezing in a foreign dance sequence, because he didn’t have to hide the story behind the ‘white’ alpine!