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November, 1946
in our theatres and their sanitation."
"But when will all these things be done?" I asked him impatiently. Only recently I had seen "Rana Pratap" and the mortification of seeing our historical heritage mercilessly slaughtered was still fresh in my mind.
"Well, I am not a prophet", said the Home Minister, "nor am I a magician to wish a thing and get it the next moment. The machinery of the government, even under a popular ministry, travels a bit slow. But there will be no slackening, I assure you, till the object is achieved. It is not the industry I am thinking of, it is the effect of the intended comprehensive legislation on the people in general that is most important. Any legislation that will ultimately influence the life and attitudes of millions has to be undertaken with extreme care. I don't want to do anything in a hurry as I am anxious to do a good job!"
This man of measured steps talks in precise terms. There is no brag, temper or vindictiveness in his tone. If at all, his words are weighed with a sincere anxiety to do the right thing in the rieht manner.
GANDHIJI AND MORARJI
Though Mr, Morarji has not seen many Indian pictures, he seems to have seen enough to realize the utter intellectual poverty of our productions. To a stern realist, like our Home Minister, the abuse of the golden opportunity which our producers have, must be an intolerable social crime.
Brought up in the Gandhian school of service and self-denial, Mr. Morarji is hardly expected to approve of the present criminal tendencies of our film producers to misuse the tremendous potentialities of the film for personal gain and aggrandizement at the cost of the illiterate masses.
Remembering Gandhiji's general disapproval of films, with some impish satisfaction I said, "Morarjibhai, you seem to like films — at least good films — while Gandhiji says that the films are an evil."
"I don't know when and where Gandhiji has said so and I refuse to believe the statement till I see it in reference to its context", he said quickly. "But I believe that in a modern progressive state, the film can be used as a powerful medium of all-round instruction with immense possibilities just as
FILMINDI A
Meena is back again on the screen in "Arsi", a social story of Jeevan
nations like Russia, U.S.A. and England are doing today. The Government will encourage all films having both educational and healthy recreational values and later on only such films will be allowed to be shown to the public."
Well, here is an honest man telling us in his characteristic .straightforward manner what he sincerely intends to do with our film industry. And as this man is the Home Minister of the Government of Bombay, our film people may well sit up and listen, for, with the proposed plans of the Government are linked their future prospects and prosperity.
Let us all hope that our popular Home Minister gives some practical shape to his present plans as soon as possible, because after 30 long years of rotten pictures one feels like having some really good ones whatever the producers may think.
Coy as usual Suraiyya plays the lead in "Dak Bungalow", a social story of Indian National Pictures Ltd.
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