Punjabi films on the precipice
By Surinder Malhi

IN a dramatic fashion, pollywood (The Punjabi film industry) received a tremendous boost with the success of the movies like Shaheed-e-Mohabbat Boota Singh and Mahoul Theek Hai. The cinema of this region is passing through a critical phase. The lack of financial resources, apathy of the government and the indifference of the audiences are playing havoc with this industry.

Producers of Punjabi films, like Preeti Sapru, Iqbal Chana, Manjit Mann and Inderjit Hasanpuri, are now opting for greener pastures. It would be correct to assert that, at present, Punjabi cinema is virtually facing an extinction.

Notwithstanding this, some committed patrons of Pollywood are doing their best to ameliorate its condition. Ravinder Ravi generally known as the David Dhawan of Punjabi movies, is one of them.

He has directed films like Anakh Jattan Di, Jat Jeuna Maur, Dil Da Mamla, Partigya and Truck Driver. This kept the box office cash registers ringing. His recent films like Sikandera and Mukaddar are receiving raving pre-release reviews.

Ravi is concerned about the present plight of Pollywood.He is critical of the subsidy policy of the state government. "There is", he explains, "no clear-cut policy about subsidising Punjabi movies. Our state government occasionally provides subsidy to some chosen and perhaps undeserving producers, while the authentic and genuine banners are rejected outright".

Pleading for more state help, he further adds:"Marathi movies are getting hundred per cent tax exemption. On the other hand, we are finding it difficult to release our pictures because exhibitors do not like to show regional films in their theatres. My suggestion is that the state government can, at least, direct the provincial exhibitors to unspool yearly four to five Punjabi pictures in their cinema halls."

What about the cine-goers? Why do they display a lukewarm attitude towards Punjabi films? "The reason", Ravi explains is very simple. Our viewers can grasp both Punjabi and Hindi with equal felicity.

Now, as it stands within the premises of knowledge of every cine-buff, Punjabi pictures lack the technical glitter. So, if the audience is given a choice, they prefer to watch Hindi movies. Therefore, it is very difficult to draw the viewers towards theatres.

What is the major drawback of these films?"Most of our films", he explains "are merely photocopies of their counter-part Pakistani films which are heavily dependent upon gory violence and loud dialogues".

Can not Punjabi film-makers be more creative and original? "Yes" Ravi elaborates, "they can. But where are the resources? The cost of production has become astronomical. Any experiment requires a lot of risk. I give you one example — both Jaspal Bhatti and Gurdas Mann gave quality films which were also declared as hits. Even then, they are not interested in producing more films of such class. The reason is very clear — even they have failed to recover their investments".

Why don’t producers unite to salvage this position? "This again, is a lamentable aspect", asserts Ravi, "Pollywood film makers are not united. They have formed two parallel unions which continue to squabble over their vested interests. You see, even this channel is totally blocked".