Ten years ago there was such a sense of excitement in my world in New York City, when Ashutosh Gowarikar's Lagaan opened in a couple of Indian theaters. There had been much anticipation for the film. A R Rahman's compositions were already popular before the film's release. And Lagaan delivered, despite its length, hokey and predictable plot line — where the Brits were mostly all bad and Indians all good. It was Bollywood at its entertaining best.
The Lagaan express ran at full speed for nearly a year as Aamir Khan spent long periods of time in the US, first promoting the film for the Oscars, then when it won the best picture nomination and later during its art house run in New York and Los Angles. Although Lagaan did not win an Oscar, there was a sense that Indian films had found a magical formula to open the key to mainstream American market. Even today, some Americans I know who are familiar with Indian films refer to Lagaan as a good place to start the process of exploring Bollywood.
At that time, there was talk about Khan meeting agents and studio folks to start a career in Hollywood. One profile piece on Khan in the press even referred to him as the Indian Tom Cruise. But that was just the work of a good public relations team. Khan did not have any career in the US, but went on to produce more films in India.
Other Bollywood actors also tried their luck in Hollywood. A year after the release of Lagaan, GQ magazine ran a cover story on Hrithik Roshan where he was referred to as "the most famous person you have never heard of." People in America still have not heard of him! Then last year, Roshan's father made one more unsuccessful attempt to launch the son's career in the US with a dud called Kites.
Then Aishwarya Rai tried to make a mark here and she even got some film roles, although no one remembers them. She appeared a couple of times on Oprah Winfrey's show and seems to have bought the copyright to the title "the most beautiful woman in the world". Her career in the west is now limited to modeling and appearing on red carpets at international film festivals. The only Indian who has actually made it in the west — even though it is a recent phenomenon — is Freida Pinto, the girl who came from nowhere, and many people are baffled by that.
Did anyone in Bollywood learn any lesson from Lagaan? Not much, I think, other than perhaps that the magic formula does not exist.
It may be safe to say that Lagaan was a fluke. In the decade since then, no other Indian film came close to winning an Oscar nomination — although there have been some quality independent films in Hindi and other languages, and some decent Bollywood products.
An Oscar nomination does not have to be the benchmark for good quality cinema. But a recent article by British critic Derek Malcolm stated: "Bollywood is hardly a blip on the radar of world cinema." And that is so true!
I see that at world film festivals, where international press shows a lukewarm response to Indian films. Last year, the press conference for Dhobi Ghat at the Toronto Film Festival was covered by mostly South Asian reporters. The opening night screening was packed, but with local desis who were drawn to the film because of Khan's name. The My Name is Khan press conference at the 2010 Berlin Film Festival did bring some non-desi reporters, but that is because of Shah Rukh Khan's inexplicable popularity in Germany. This year just about five reporters showed up in Berlin for the 7 Khoon Maaf press conference.
There is a story that Lagaan watchers like to narrate — that nearly 8,000 people watched the film at the Locarno Film Festival in 2001 and then it won the audience award. That story has become a part of the Lagaan legend and it will stay like that, perhaps until Bollywood finally comes up with the next fluke!
Marathi TV
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