The fascination fundas
Ranjan Das Gupta

While Milan Lutharia went back to the 1970s to trace the growth of the underworld in Mumbai in his latest hit, Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai, Madhur Bhandarkar follows Hrishikesh Mukherjee and Basu Chatterjee of the same era in his latest Dil To Bachha Hai Ji. Dev Anand has announced a sequel to his 1972 blockbuster, Hare Rama Hare Krishna to be shot at the same location of Hotel Saltee, Kathmundu, after the release of Charge Sheet.

What is so special about the 1970s? Explains Madhur Bhandarkar, "I and my generation grew up watching memorable films of this era, like Mera Naam Joker, Johny Mera Naam, Amar Prem, Bobby and Deewar. There were refreshing satires and comedies like Bawarchi, Rajnigandha, Golmaal and Angoor also in the 1970s. Such films are made no more. My Dil To Bacha Hai Ji has been directly inspired by the family comedies of the 1970s."

The 1970s saw the downfall of iconic stars like Raj Kapoor (above) and Dev Anand

Rajesh Khanna, superstar of the 1970s, says, "Nostalgia always has a deep value with every human being. My golden period was in the 1970s. But if I opt for a film today, I will prefer a script with a contemporary and present idea. To me, the 1960s was a more glorious period than the 1970s, with a gamut of evergreen pictures like Sujata, Ganga Jumna, Saheb Biwi aur Gulam and Guide. I don’t think films of that level were made in the 1970s."

Time and again Hindi film-makers have gone back to a bygone era be it the Mughal dynasty, the Independence struggle or the Indo-Pak conflicts of 1965 and 1971. Many feel that even today subjects from earlier days, specially the 1970s, will hold sway over others. The 1970s saw the rise of the turbulent Naxalite movement in West Bengal, the dreaded Emergency, political uncertainty, poverty and frustration of unemployment as well as the resurgence of the Left Front in West Bengal and Kerala, in particular. Yet, there is really very little of cultural or literary worth to be adopted for cinema from the 1970s.

Analysing the present trend, Manoj Kumar says, "Why highlight the growth of the mafia of the 1970s? It was too mild and in its nascent years then as compared to its larger-than-life image today. It only shows the bankruptcy of ideas of present-day scriptwriters. Why cannot they concentrate on present-day topics like honour killings, meaningless price hike and other socio economic factors for their films?"

Rajesh Khanna was the superstar of that decade

Besides a few examples of good cinema, the 1970s saw the downfall of Dilip Kumar, Raj Kapoor and Dev Anand. It also witnessed highly gifted directors like Chetan Anand, B. R. Chopra, Vijay Anand and Shakti Samanta becoming victims of gross commercialisation. Talented actors like Prem Nath, Ajit, Prem Chopra and even the iconic Pran were reduced to hamming and compromising with box office ingredients ridiculously in the vein attempt of trying to save commercial cinema, which was rotting. The most eventful affairs of the 1970s, was the meteoric rise and fall of Rajesh Khanna and the birth of Amitabh Bachhan, Indian cinema’s ultimate angry young man.

Of course, there was a saving grace to decaying cinema in the form of neo-wave started by M. S. Sathyu, Shyam Benegal and Govind Nihalani with classics like Garm Hawa, Ankur, Nishant and Aakrosh. But their kind of cinema was only for a niche audience. Says, Govind Nihalani, "If today, I direct a film I will never go back to the happenings of the 1970s, unless I have an exceptional literary work of that era. I will concentrate on the modern times, which are far more complicated and difficult as compared to the 1970s."

There is no harm in looking up a bygone decade for inspiration. But surely mafia-oriented culture, larger-than-life absurd dialogues and situations as well as the cheap bellbottom culture cannot inspire a creative mind. These come, create a sudden impact and fizzle away. As Adoor Gopalakrishnan rightly points out, "Does anyone from the Mumbai film industry have the guts to film a saga challenging the Emergency and highlighting the reign of terror and autocracy of the middle 1970s? I will salute him and compliment him as a maker of solid substance."