FilmIndia (Jan-Nov 1942)

September 1942 FILM INDIA hand-woven cloth made in India. To the Mahatma it is a symbol of our nation's freedom. The only actor whom I have seen wearing Khaddar is Prithviraj. On ceremonial occasions he hits you in the eye with it. The others are too fond of colour to wear Khaddar. The actresses are out of it entirely. S. Gopalkrishnan (Madras) Why is it that Director Kedar Sharma is fond of the naked bodies of women? He makes every attempt to show them as cleverly as possible. Kedar Sharma is not alone in this liking. Every true artist likes a good figure. And I also claim to be an artist. What is wrong with the human figure, be it of a man or of a woman? Is it always necessary that it should be draped and its beauty camouflaged? Nudity is never immoral by itself unless it is wedded to an immoral thought in the mind of the onlooker. Purely from an artistic point of view, a woman is the finest creation of God and if Kedar Sharma is sometimes tempted to strip this beautiful figure, he merely pays homage to the Maker's art. Not all men are lucky enough to see Art in this divine blossom. Saved Md. Zamanshah (Matari) Where is Mumtaz Shanti of Lahore at present? At Shivaji Park, Dadar, Bombay. M. Balaraman (Dar-Es-Salaam) Which is, in your opini-on, more difficult: Music or lacting? Music. One must know something of it to be able to sing and one must, in addition, have a voice for it. While acting is an unknown quantity. Besides, everyman is an actor, more or less. And without knowing anything of acting one can pass off as an actor, e.g. several actors in the Indian film industry. ). B. Raju (Bangalore City) What do you think of Bharati, the new star of New Irheatres? I think she is splendid. She seems to be having all that the screen requires: personality, music, action, good diction and youth. I hope she helps New Theatres to recover a bit of their once glorious past. w. R. Singh (Agra) I My father doesn't allow me to see even good piclares, because, he says, all pictures generally are deloralising. What should I do? Send the old man to Sevagram. He would fit in well there. If you can't do that see the pictures on the quiet. There are matinee shows in your town. It is not always that all orders given by parents are necessarily rational. Some, therefore, need not be obeyed. The problem of getting the \ money for admission into the theatres is your own affair. If you have got a kind mother, sell her I the idea of your seeing pictures to broaden your outlook on life. Tell her that unless you saw pictures you would be like daddy. And she will quickly agree to pay. What does the old man say about "filmindia"? He doesn't mind that. Does he? Probably, he too enjoys it. V. M. Vedachallam (Bangalore) I get jealous of you whenever I see you in the group photographs in '•filmindia", standing between the ladies and patting their soft shoulders. Who told you that they have soft shoulders? Those who have to earn their own livelihood can't afford to have soft shoulders. So you have nothing to be jealous about. In the film industry we are not so sex-conscious. Even women are taken as good wage-earners and not made a fuss over unnecessarily. M. Jaigopal Naidu (Hyderabad) I am in love with Neena. How should I proceed? Jaigopal Naidu stop where you are and don't proceed. Neena is a forbidden fruit. G. M. Jairam (Karachi) The scund of local Imperial Talkies is very faulty. We can not hear anything clearly. What are we to do? If what you say is true, draw the attention of the management of the theatre. If they are good showmen, they will respect your wishes and attend to your grievance. Shahid Ishaq (Moradabad) How shall I persuade my mother to get me married to a girl whom I love, adore and admire? If you feel all that for your girl, get married to her straightaway and after marriage ask for your mother's blessings. What sort of a man are you to wait for your mother to do for you what you ought to do yourself. Narendra Singh (Ajmer) I hear that Shantaram is going to produce his own pictures very shortly. Is it true? Yes, he threatens to do so. But he threatens so many other things also. We'll know when he actually does them. R. K. Gupta (Delhi) Why are the highly educated girls belonging to high class families and who can get all comforts m their homes, becoming film actresses? You seem to be labouring under the impression that film work is a bed of roses and that our actresses are working merely to secure some physical comforts. Have you heard of people taking up films as a career just as other people take to other professions? Have you heard of people devoting themselves to the service of art? Don't think that our filmstars are having a grand gala time with all fun and no work. There are girls who have sometimes to work as many as thirtysix hours continuously in closed studios and under powerful, burning light. Come and try it for a day and you will know how much "conifort" there is in the process. 23