FilmIndia (1946)

December, 1946 event, the producer runs all over the town on his head carrying reprints of "filmindia's" review and pays other magazines to reprint the review in toto in their columns. Even in their newspaper advertisements, they proudly quote "filmindia's" opinion of their pictures and consider themselves to be proud and happy to have won the appreciation of "filmindia." But when "filmindia" gives a scathing criticism of a picture, which is almost an every day occurrence, its mighty producer stops the advertisement, carries a grievance to his brother producers, urges them to impose a commercial and social boycott on the editor, pays other penny papers to carry on a counter propaganda and runs all over the town like a frantic dog calling the Editor a blackmailer and spitting out filthy abuse at his ancestry. It is difficult to size up exactly the psychological make-up of the average Indian producer. He wants all praise, pots and pots of it for his gluttonous temperament and he . would even give his pants away if in his nudity some publicity man promises to find him incomparable greatness. But no sooner some one utters a word of criticism, the producer loses his temper and moves heaven and earth to condemn the critic as a blackmailer. f/AroujAout the day "w Keep COOL andfm/t <7Ae Cusso/2$' way ~~ There is nothing mo ing after a hard day i or office, or after str cise, than a bath, a brisk rub down, and then sprinkle the body with soothing and refreshing talcum powder. Just try it and experience the feeling yourself. OBTAINABLE AT ALL GOOD DEALERS FILMINDIA This has been going on for years and the Indian producer has never stopped to see the exact worth of his own productions. The other man has always been the bad man who blackmails the poor honest producer to get some advertising revenue. But why is All-India Radio, a Government Department, giving bad reviews of the pictures of our poor honest producers? Surely All India Radio is not looking out for any advertising revenue ! And surely this Government Department has not also taken to blackmailing the poor, honest Indian producer ! Probably, the A. I. R. critics who review Indian pictures haven't enough intelligence to understand and appreciate the subtleties of the pictures of our producers. A charge of lack of intelligence can be levelled at anybody because it is never necessary to prove it. Intelligence is such an intangible quantity that even our film producers can safely claim its monopoly. It is no wonder therefore that Indian producers who are under no obligation to give any intelligent reasons for their convictions have come to the conclusion that "film reviews by A. I. R. would not be in the interests of the Indian film industry." The reason for this unanimous conviction is simple. A. I. R. has been reviewing Indian pictures pretty intelligently. The A. I. R. critic has been giving his honest opinion and his honest opinion must necessarily describe the present degenerate state of our motion pictures. It is not exactly a state secret that 99% of our films are extremely rotten. This has been, on the contrary, our national wail. Only constant whipping can some day improve our films and make them a useful medium of instruction on national lines. All India Radio need not stop its film criticism just because our film producers don't like it. Our film producers don't like anything good. Every possible medium of criticism must be used to condemn the present producers and their putrid productions. True critics, who wish to build a progressive film industry on national lines, cannot afford to pander to the producers' personal interests. An industry becomes great by its product. Better films is the end of all well-meant criticism and however much the producers may disagree, that end alone should be the final goal of all criticism. We want better films not richer producers. There is a strong man, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, at the head of broadcasting in India. He knows the Indian producers well and their ways too well. Sardar Patel must insist on continuing the present honest and truthful criticism of films from A. I. R, And if criticism is going to be honest and truthful, it is necessarily going to be unpalatable to the producers who have brought themselves up in unbridled praise. 13