FilmIndia (Jan-Nov 1942)

May 1942 FILMINDI A Under the Defense Rules, the Government have moreover restricted the footage of long feature films to a maximum of 11,000 feet while advertisement trailors have been cut down to a maximum of 400 feet. This restriction is a happy boon in disguise and we are at last going to have some good entertainment in reasonable length in place of the old practice of giving boring films of over fourteen and fifteen thousand feet. The people of South India in particular ought to offer prayers for their deliverance through this Defense Regulation, as, for years, they have been tortured by marathon productions of 20,000 feet and odd. In cutting down the footage of the main programmes, a space has now been automatically made for newsreels and topical films. Here is an opportunity which can be used by people like Mr. Y. A. Fazalbhoy, who keep on writing about short films and their necessity, to produce some useful short films and fill the gap in the programme usefully. Is any further encouragement necessary? A DIRTY FILM Realizing the necessity of conserving our raw film resources, we feel that the Government ought to stop for the present all the production and exhibition of the :ommercial film which seeks to sell some product. Very recently we had the bad luck to see an ad/ertising film called "Men Over Machines" produced )y Messrs. J. Walter Thompson for the Buckingham Wills of Madras and directed by Mr. Evelyn Wood. Apart from the film failing to tell its sales story ?ffectively, it was in itself a waste of so much raw naterial as, even technically, this effort was too poor o deserve any praise. The theme of this film provided one more eye>pener to the thinking Indian who did not fail to oberve the cheap capitalistic exploitation of our masses vhich this film seeks to defend. It seems that the directors of the Buckingham Mills re anxious to take away our agriculturists from their amily lands and harness their manhood to the everegenerating grind of the capitalists. Even the little children of the mill labourers are ijected with the poison early in life and brought up s more grist to the mill. The film seems to drive home that agriculture in ndia merely helps to land the farmer into debts from 'hich he can never be free unless he leaves his home ind and takes up work with the Buckingham Mills. That is the dirty impression this film leaves beind in one's mind and it is surprising that a respect3le firm like J. Walter Thompson which hopes to irry on its business in our future Free India, could 2 a party to this dirty game of capitalistic exploita3n. Even advertising has a moral code of its own id one can't sell a product by advertising it against .e patriotic sentiment of a people. In our opinion, no Indian exhibitor, proud of his heritage, ought to show this film whatever the monetary reward. A.R.P. SHORTS It is only natural that the A.R.P. organisation should make an effort to take the benefit of the film medium to popularise the protection measures that people must adopt and help others adopt in the event of air raids. Cinemas in Bombay have co-operated with the A.R.P. organisation as was only to be expected of them. From Friday, April 17, people have been witnessing in all the prominent cinema houses in the city short pictures entitled "A.R.P. And You". The first picture was concerned with fighting incendiary bombs. These demonstrations are quite helpful indeed. Other pictures of a similar character were shown in successive weeks. The subjects they dealt with included correct behaviour in an air raid, protection of food and combating the Japanese Incendiary bomb. For once, the Educational Films of India gave proof of their existence after a long time. The versions are both in English and Hindustani. SOVIET "MORALE" FILMS The Indian film world has a lot to learn from Soviet Russia. Sir Stafford Cripps emphasised that L Yafcub seems to be nursing a pig tail in "Lalaji", a comedy of National Studios. 9