FilmIndia (1946)

May, 1946 FILMINDIA Bhim has a character role to play in "Namak" of Azad Pictures. THE TOAST OF INDEPENDENCE 4) On page 33 of the book, \vc find a description of the dire need of the Chinese for urgent medical relief. In Shantaram's "Kotnis", all the pains are taken to drive home the fact that all that the Chinese needed was Shantaram himself and not even Dr. Kotnis. Shantaram fails to show, by not portraying the intense sufferings of the Chinese why a great leader like Pandit Jawaharlal was moved to appeal to his people for help. 5) The whole of China, where the doctors went, gave them a great toast in "I give you the toast of the Independence of India." Not in one spot in the picture has Shantaram dared to use this graceful toast from a sympathetic people. May we know why? Does the great Shantaram not approve of our people's struggle for freedom3 Perhaps our people should have obtained Shantaram's permission before asking for independence. 6) Dr. Kotnis' old father died in debts. He killed himself to escape his creditors — creditors he had acquir ed in educating his son. What « pathetic sacrifice! Shantaram com pletely twists this noble sacrifice, strips It of its intense pathos and presents the eld father as a mercenary man who expected his son to pay dividends on his investment. He makes the father fit up a streamlined dispensary, to give his setting man a chance and to provide himself with enough space to jump about, for the son to start minting money straightaway. What a heartless distornon of facts in which a struggling and noble old man committed suicide under the crushing weight of debts incurred for the education of his son. If Shantaram's father had done a hundredth of what Kotnis' father did, Shantaram would have erected statues of his old man in a hundred towns of India. Today the memory of both the dead — father and son — stands insulted at the hands o! a mercenary producer. It is a cruel shame. It is a wonder how a man of principles, like Dr. Basu acting as an adviser for the picture, could have allowed this outrage on the sacred memory of the dead. THE FUNNY GENERAL 7) The character of General Chu Teh, the Commander of the glorious Sth Route Army has been portrayed in the person of Baburao Pendharkar under an assumed name of General Pong. The five doctors found Chu Teh "sincere, passionate and verv patient, almost fatherly in his calm dignity" (page 106). In his picture, Shantaram presents a clown indulging in slapstick gestures and in doing so insults the whole Chinese nation which fought so valiantly for its freedom. It is worth dissecting the brain of this petty, egotistic film producer who is prepared to mock at the high flown ideals of a great nation to attract some filthy lucre for his greedy pockets. Not only Shantaram but the whole Indian nation owes China an apology for portraying her brave general in such a clownish manner. 8) On page 110 of the book we are told that the members of the Medical mission found women everywhere from the home to the battlefield doing all types of work. And yet in his 1 1000 feet of picture,, Shantaram shows only his wife as the only Chinese woman with one extra old woman thrown in for grace. Did Jayshree represent the entire womanhood of China? This man, Shantaram, who often brags about being unique in providing atmosphere in his picture, could not even get fifty women to prove that there were other women in China besides Jayshree, his talented wife. CHARKHA NOWHERE 9) The medicos found the charkha in every Chinese home. But you can't expect home. But Shantaram to show Box-Office Attractions ALL ! DAKU KI LADKI ANARKALI GUL SANOWER VASANT BENGALI TEMPLE BELLS INDIRA MA. SOUBHAGYA SUNDARI JUNGLE QUEEN MADHURI -and 20 more pictures produced by IfMMAL Film (o. — — All-World rights open — For World rights or territorial rights, write to : Greenwich Traders Corporation. Post Box No. 212, DELHI. 45