Sagar Basisth (Sharma)
Sagar Basisth Sharma is a known face in the Comedy industry. He is a writer and is presently working as research and data analyst at a Siliguri based portal The Cord.
- Sagar Basisth (Sharma)#molongui-disabled-link
- Sagar Basisth (Sharma)#molongui-disabled-link
There was a time in the 70s and 80s, as my dad recalls his young days when watching a film anywhere would almost be an impossible task. The film released in Mumbai would take a year at the minimum to reach the theatres in small towns like Kalimpong and Darjeeling. Housefull was the most popular cinema at the time, which demonstrates how much people cared about their stars and their art. The same film would run continuously until the audience stopped coming as there was no film released every weekend to give competition as it happens in modern times.
This was also an era where hit songs would guarantee successful box office running. A time when a lot of effort was put into making songs as it decided the fate of the film altogether. Nepal is close to India and is highly influenced by the neighbouring country in almost every aspect. The formula that worked for Indian audiences worked for the audiences in Nepal too as every Indian film releases there and that is what makes the taste of the audiences across the border so similar.
There was a time when the romance genre was guaranteed success and the same formula worked for decades. The Nepal film industry started following the same pattern and it mostly works for Nepal audiences even now. It was after the success of films like Loot, Kagbeni, Pashupati Prasad, etc the film industry started focusing on more realistic cinema, and the films mentioned above are considered to have revolutionised Nepali cinema.
The pandemic completely changed our lifestyle and had a deep impact on the film industry with theatres remaining shut for almost two years. This was the time when online platforms gained popularity and regional cinema started getting explored. It helped in flourishing regional cinema as Indian audiences started consuming content from all over the world. With Pradeep Khadka starrer ‘Prem Geet 3’ getting dubbed in Hindi and releasing all over India, it has paved the way for Nepali Cinema to go ahead and become popular among the Indian masses. ‘Kabaddi 4’ did great business in North East India among Nepali audiences proving that there is a market for well-made Nepali films in India as well.
With these healthy responses from audiences across borders for films made in both countries, it becomes quite important to understand where the India Nepali Film stands. There are the artists, the writers, and the directors from the North Bengal regions of Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Kurseong, and Siliguri along with the state of Sikkim but is there hope for them? With the success of Anmol Gurung directorial ‘Appa’ which was released in both countries along with a few premiers abroad as well, it can be said that there is potential but is the path so easy? Can other films replicate the success that Gurung had?
The headline of this article says, ‘Is there a future for India Nepali Cinema?’ and by that, I don’t mean to demean someone’s hard work. There is no intention of demotivating the ones that are motivated to make a breakthrough but this analysis is being made on practical grounds and for our films to flourish hard work alone is not enough. There are numerous things that need to work for the industry. A few challenges that lie ahead are listed below:
- Lack of Production Houses
There is no industry for Indian Nepali Films. For an industry to exist there have to be production houses to invest in films regularly but sadly there isn’t any apart from one in Sikkim that distributed films like ‘Kabaddi- 4’ in India. When there is no production house there is no place for screenplay writers and directors to pitch in their ideas and when that happens the idea never materialises for big screens. The region has talent, and people have stories and even history but the storytelling is only confined to music videos and short musical films because there is no capital to invest.
- No Film City in the entire of North Bengal and Sikkim
One of the biggest challenges for any Indian Nepali filmmaker would be the lack of a film city in the region. Because of the lack of a film city the filmmakers are compelled to shoot everything in real locations which are time-consuming. One needs to keep seeking shooting permissions from respective departments and make sure there is no disturbance caused to the general public and the flow of traffic which requires more manpower.
- Scattered Audience
A scattered Nepali audience in the country is a major setback for any film. Nepali audiences are concentrated only in the regions of Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Kurseong, and Sikkim. Any producer would particularly want to focus on the release of their film in these regions but would that be enough? In Siliguri and Dooars the population is mixed which may or may not generate the revenue that any producer would expect. Assam can be that one state where Indian Nepali Films can be given screens but again the population is so scattered that it would be difficult to give a long theatrical run. Moreover, the Nepali population is mostly concentrated in rural areas where theatres are luxury outside their living culture.
- Unable to get screens in Nepal
The film industry in Nepal is a growing film industry that continuously releases films. The release dates are scheduled one after the other. Moreover, all the major Bollywood films are released in Nepal on the same day it releases in India. Now with South Indian films getting more pan-India releases in Hindi dubbed versions it finds a huge market in Nepal as well because of the craze and fanbase. As a result, it gets extremely difficult for Indian Nepali Film to find screens in Nepal, and even if it does they would be out of the theatre within a week.
- Change in the taste of the audience
The young generation that has access to content from all corners of the world demands more. The film has to deliver in all aspects so that it can grab the attention of an audience that demands a better script, screenplay, acting, cinematography, and visual effects (if used). This can be made possible only if the professionals working in the film are experienced in their craft. For cinematic beauty, the location plays an important role, and all of these increase the budget of the film. There have been various reasons behind Nepali films not being up to mark in terms of quality out of which financial limitations have always topped the list.
