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Pyaar, Dosti, Etc 2.0

The definition of love and friendship is changing for the youth and films are reflecting that

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A still from Dear Zindagi
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I knew the world had shifted when Katrina Kaif and Shah Rukh Khan were shown having premarital sex in Jab Tak Hai Jaan, a Yash Chopra film. It was casual, and there was no comment on it. That’s when the landscape altered irrevocably,” declares well-known film critic Anupama Chopra. 

Indeed, when Yash Chopra who’s known to epitomise romance incorporates premarital sex, it becomes a bold move, a defining moment. Something which his son Aditya Chopra has taken forward in the upcoming Befikre, the posters of which have the lead pair Ranveer Singh and Vaani Kapoor smooching in different positions! The trailers too promise some no-holds-barred make-out scenes between the two, who strike up a friendship in Paris and just hang out with sex on their minds — friends with benefits, anyone? 

The recently released Ae Dil Hai Mushkil questioned the very definition of love and friendship — pyaar mein junoon hai, dosti mein sukoon — sparking a debate across generations. If in Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, his 1998 debut directorial, Karan Johar showed that you can’t be friends with someone you are in love with, in ADHM, he took a 180-degree turn and showed that a boy and girl can be friends and in love but it need not be a romantic relationship!

Clearly, pyaar and dosti have undergone a sea change in cinema and what was true just five years ago doesn’t hold water now.

Liberal outlook

Says noted film critic Raja Sen, “Earlier, there were certain things that the hero and heroine were not allowed and that line has been blurring over the years. Now, it has come to a point where audience is intrigued by more unconventional cinema, by relationships that are more casually and interestingly depicted.” Take for instance, the upcoming Dear Zindagi. From what we see in the promos, it is evident that Alia Bhatt’s character goes through three romantic relationships and later seeks the guidance of Shah Rukh Khan, who plays her life coach. As Rajeev Masand, Entertainment Editor, CNN-IBN says, “Though I can’t gauge exactly what it is about, it’s definitely a new language, very different from what we were used to seeing back in the day.”

Sex and sexuality

Sex is no longer taboo in films. Since Khwaish that was publicised as the film with 17 liplocks, and Bhatts spawned the era of erotic thrillers, steamy scenes have become de rigueur. Yet, when a Karan Johar brings a gay character in mainstream cinema — Kapoor & Sons — without making it caricaturish and saddling it with clichés, or shows an older woman hooking up with a young lover in Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, it is a turning point. Aditya Chopra moving from pure romance in Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge to casual sex in Befikre, is a paradigm shift, the genesis of which was laid in his production Neal ‘N’ Nikki. Says Anupama, “Actually it was with DDLJ that the whole exploration — the question of love and friendship — started. It’s not an overnight change, it’s an ongoing process. But yes, sexuality has definitely changed. Even the conversations that happened then (during DDLJ) have a different interpretation now.” Agrees Tushar Joshi, Editor, Bollywood Life.com, “The concept of love in 2016 is different from what it used to be. Films have overcome sexuality, genders and other boundaries set by society. The third spoke in marriage — the extramarital affair that stunned people in Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna is no longer a taboo. In Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, people talked about Aishwarya’s steamy scenes, but they were not shocked that a divorced woman is having a relationship with a younger guy.” Certainly not, when you have the oh-so-beautiful Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and the good looking Ranbir Kapoor doing the deed.


Ash and Ranbir in Ae Dil Hai Mushkil

Targetting the youth

With 50 per cent of India’s population in the less-than-25 age group, youth has become omnipresent. The digital platform has already logged in with web series targetted at youth whose concept of love, relationship and marriage has undergone a radical change. Series like Bang Bajaa Baraat and Permanent Roommates which tackle issues close to them like live-in relationships, love and friendship have scored big with the youth. It’s the same demographic that is now the target audience of filmmakers. Says film exhibitor Akshaye Rathi, “Romcoms typically are focussed on the young urban market. With films like Befikre and Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, filmmakers are clearly trying to reach out to the young audience — identifying their taste-buds and catering to them — as they are the ones going to the multiplexes in a big way today.” The phenomenon began in the West eight years ago and five years back in India. Says Rajeev, “Filmmakers have recognised that the paying public is the youth. That is why you see so many superhero films, sequels and franchises in the West. These films cater to the young male demographic and the same thing is happening here.”


Befikre

Alienating the older generation

While filmmakers haven’t entirely abandoned the older generation, the fact that it’s the youth which goes to the movies the most, is influencing the content. “Films make maximum business on the weekends and fortunately or unfortunately, it’s the youth that still believes in watching movies first day, first show. The elders do not want to rush or jostle for the movie, they will watch it aaram se or even wait for it to air on satellite TV and watch it at home. So, the films reflect what the young college kids want,” says Rajeev. He explains that even in the West, dramas have become fewer in number, coming during the year-end when the Oscars are closer, simply because the older generation is not going to the cinemas. But Anupama feels that all sorts of movies are being made, even dramas, “Some like Sooraj Barjatya go back to the traditional mould, which he projects in his cinema.”

Way ahead

Even as audiences debate over the daring content in cinema, and filmmakers fight with the censor board over cuts, Anupama feels that our cinema is still too timid. “It is not exactly reflecting the reality, when you look at how far urban India has moved in terms of sexuality. For me, the most startling moment was in Ae Dil Hai Mushkil when a younger lover is meeting his lover’s ex husband and the conversation flows in a somewhat mature manner. They are treating each other fine. Where do you have this in Hindi cinema?” It goes without saying that filmmakers have to move with the times and reflect what’s happening around us. As Akshaye puts it, “Kuch Kuch Hota Hai was a rage among the youngsters then, but today’s youth in their 20s with the kind of exposure they have will probably cringe at the film or find it cheesy.”

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