Lucknow: Commercialisation has made parallel cinema lose its charm. This was the crux of deliberations by experts during a thought-provoking discussion on ‘Pillars of Parallel Cinema', at The Metaphor Literature Festival on Sunday, featuring filmmaker OP Srivastava, actor Nawal Shukla and literary scholar Jaya Srivastava.
Tracing the roots of parallel cinema to the SK Patil Committee (1955) and the creation of FTII and FFC, which aimed at supporting independent films, OP Srivastava delved into the impact made by small-budget films like ‘Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron' (Rs 7 lakh) in comparison to big-budget movies like ‘Sholay' (Rs 2 crore), despite financial constraints.
He expressed concern over the dominance of mainstream films, which has left little space for independent filmmakers in theatres.
Jaya Srivastava discussed Lucknow's rich cultural and cinematic heritage with reference to iconic films like ‘Pakeezah' and ‘Umrao Jaan'.
The panelist discussed the transformative period of Indian cinema from 1960-1999 and described parallel cinema as "aam aadmi ka cinema", though its appreciation was noted to have been limited mostly to the elite.
The session concluded with a critical reflection on challenges faced by parallel cinema, such as budget constraints and limited audiences.