In the year of Kites, it was Milan Luthria’s Once Upon A Time in Mumbaai that actually flew. And with it returned what Milan calls “high voltage cinema” where from dialogues to drama everything was “flamboyant”. Along with Dabangg, it came at a time when Bollywood’s romance with uber cool cinema with foreign sensibility had started to give diminishing returns at the box office. As always, Milan was expected to repeat his new found formula and the director, who once gave us Chori Chori and Taxi No. 9211, got caught in a period. So much so that when a reporter asked what to expect from his latest venture, Baadshaho, Milan chuckled, “Entertainment, entertainment, entertainment.” the defining statement of The Dirty Picture, his last hurrah at the box office.
Milan holds that there is space for this kind of cinema if it’s done with a certain kind of sensitivity. “The country is constantly changing yet there is certain connection that we have with the past. It is like folk music. It can never go out of style. It gives a sort of adrenaline rush. The dialogues are very much part of our DNA. We are a high voltage country. We are not subtle. The lines give you a chance to clap and whistle and such films allow you to carry those lines with you. Many feel like a hero when they say lines like duaon main yaad rakhna. (from Once Upon A Time in Mumbaai). I think it is aspirational for a large number of our youth.” Really? “Yes, I still see so many auto rickshaws with lines of my films written on the back. Whenever I go for promotions, people shout out my lines.”
Milan and writer Rajat Arora are probably the only team that is indulging in a sort of relentless dialoguebaazi. “It is a happy space for us. We like a blend of realism and flamboyance. I don’t like something subdued and underplayed. In Baadshaho, we have given a slight Rajasthani tinge to dialogues.”
His experiments have not always been critic friendly, though. “Why it should not be critic friendly, if the lines are in good taste,” he counters. The point that is often made is that people don’t talk like that any more. “A section of audience might feel like that but what is so difficult or odd about ‘woh ishq hi kya jo salaamat chhod de’ (of what use is that love that leaves you unscathed – Ajay Devgn’s line from Baadshaho). It is a simple line which comes at the right time in the film. Sometimes one line is enough to describe a character. Like Emraan Hashmi says ‘sharm aur main ek sentence main nahin aate.’ It is a very witty line and goes with the flamboyant nature of the film.”
Striking a balance
He admits that the problem begins when the dialoguebaazi becomes relentless. Something that was apparent in the sequel of Once Upon A Time.... “We are extremely aware that if overdone, it can lead to overkill. We are constantly checking that it is not exaggerated. Your characters can’t be talking like this for two hours. The punchlines should come only at turning points and the emotional pull has to be strong enough to justify them.”
He reminds that when he made a contemporary film like Taxi No. 9211, it was devoid of such frills. “Tomorrow, if I make a slice of life film, I will not use such lines. It goes with the period. The last four films belonged to a period and they needed it,” he reasons.
Yes, the last four films have almost wiped out his past. People do look for strands of Kacche Dhaage in Baadshaho, but that’s it. “I have been slotted many times. I was told very vehemently at one stage that I only make male centric films. Then they said I only make underworld films. Now after The Dirty Picture I am told that women in my films are very strong. I am used to it and I know how to get out of it. It is a coincidence that I am doing these kind of films.”
Capturing the mood
Despite the success of The Dirty Picture, the male gaze of his camera while capturing female characters has been questioned. “I don’t agree. The amount of respect I got from women after The Dirty Picture was massive. It went on to win three National Awards. It appeared as one of the milestones in many lists that came out when 100 years of Indian cinema were celebrated. I present my female characters with a lot of class and respect and I will continue to do that,” he avers.
One consistent feature in his films is the element of thrill. “I personally get bored very easily,” says Milan, who learnt his craft under Mahesh Bhatt. “Be it drama, songs or action, both Rajat and I like things happening. I can’t stay on a scene for ten minutes. Audience have become restless. It is difficult to hold their attention. If you leave them to wander, you will lose them.”
Set against the backdrop of the Emergency, Baadshaho is about a heist involving six quirky characters. Milan says his research showed that not just the royalty, a large number of rich people were also charged with concealment of wealth during the Emergency period. “It is based on real incidents but is not about one particular person or family,” says Milan in response to the buzz that the character of Illeana D’Cruz is based on Maharani Gayatri Devi.
In times when the number of shooting days have come down, multi-starrers are becoming rare. Milan denies it was easy to convince ‘friend’ Ajay Devgn and Emraan Hashmi to join hands again. Or for that matter mitigating the feeling that the likes of Sanjay Mishra will walk away with scenes. “Actors are very selfish. They are not going to do your film just because of friendship. Everybody looks out for himself. You have to write and design in such a manner that they are convinced that they are taking a step in the right direction. Each one should feel that he or she is the scene-stealer. There is a certain kind of respect for me because I have justified four-five actors in one film in the past. Randeep Hooda benefited from Once Upon a Time In Mumbaai despite a smaller role in comparison to Ajay and Emraan.”
Irrespective of trends in Bollywood, Milan says the future of his kind of cinema is bright. “See, Sanjay Leela Bhansali is reflecting on the past through his historicals. Baahubali has shown what could be done in this space. Robot 2 is another example that high voltage flamboyance is here to stay.” But can he use this grammar in a contemporary story? “It will be difficult, but can be tried. But one thing is certain, I would not like to go subtle.”