Bombay Talkies: The Indian Film Industry and Empowerment

Bombay Talkies depicts the modern struggles that various people face in the changing world. The anthology consist of four short films, each with a different director, and allows for a new discussion of the unattended social issues in India as well as the cinema industry’s role in these topics. It celebrates the 100^th year of India cinema and tries to break into a new realm of cinema left relatively untouched before. While each short story breaches a new content topic of Indian film, the overarching attention to the effects of cinema in the lives of diverse individuals is continued. More specifically, Sheila Ki Jawaani as directed by Zoya Akhtar illustrates the immense significance that the industry can have of young children, as well as others, through these shifting times. It also portrays the societal change as a result of this internalization of the values and sentiments.

            In one of the short film, a young boy Vicky is forced by his father to partake in soccer against his wishes. Vicky actually has no interests in sports, and does poorly at it. His true passion is dance. One day, he decides to dress up in his sister’s clothes with his mother’s makeup to dance around the house. When his father sees him, he becomes overly upset and hits him. He threatens him in a dominant and forceful way as to scare Vicky from expressing his perspective through his outright behaviors ever again. At this point, Vicky is split between two decisions: follow his father’s directions and suppress his inner desires, or express himself in the way that he sees fit. He instead decides to take a more stealthy option; he gives the impression to his father that he wants to take on a masculine occupation through his dreams to be a pilot but secretly still fosters internal feelings of becoming a dancer not displayed outwardly.

As Vicky recognizes the conflicting views internally and those of this father, he looks to the outside environment for cues on how to approach his situation. When his father took the family out to a movie, Vicky is drawn to Sheila Ki Jawaani, obviously depicted through his wide-eyed gaze, learning forwards engrossed in the movie, and the sheer excitement on his face. The night after the dancing incidence, he turns on the TV to find a channel showing an interview with Katrina Kaif. He is drawn to Kaif, not only as the actress partaking in the item song Sheila Ki Jawaani, which Vicky adores. In the interview, the wise words of Kaif resound with Vicky on a deeply personal level even though the separate barrier of the television exists.

The interviewer tells Kaif’s background and how, theoretically, she should have been a failure in the Bollywood film industry through both her lack of experiences and connections. While a loose connection, this situation mirrors Vicky’s because Kaif was taking the path much less easy and expected out of someone with her background. Instead, she pursued her passions with such confidence and courage that she was actually able to become successful. In the same way, Vicky has been socialized in such a way that cross-dressing or interest in more feminine activities, such as dancing, is looked down upon with an intense glare. While these behaviors are far from expected of him, he still recognizes that his internal desires are necessary for his happiness.

When Kaif recognizes the over-simplicity in her key to success of ‘just following her dreams’, the interview states that the world is not such a kind place for people with unexpected backgrounds in certain situations. This is extremely relevant to Vicky’s situation and Kaif’s response is an integral turning point in the characterization of Vicky. She states that sometimes you have to hide your dreams, and through keeping it fostered inside of yourself, you can truly achieve to anything you could have ever hoped. Vicky has at this point made the decision to internally have the same original passions but hide his secrets from the rest of the world, especially from his father. Kaif is depicted as the angelic figure, and in a way, is a savior to Vicky.

Vicky is able to draw parallels from his world and the very different situation of Katrina Kaif. He was able to become inspired through someone else’s story, while distant, of his own desires and actions. Through these observations, the short film alludes to the ubiquity of cinema and the function that the film industry, whether through the actual film or the subsidiary productions, or both, has. It serves as recognition of the audience, which is sometimes forgotten in the formulaic Bollywood approach. It works as a forewarning to the movie producers, directors, and other film professions that the content the public views actually is internalized by every audience member. The message might be taken to mean different things in different eyes but nonetheless, has a large impact. As this movie celebrates the 100^th year of Indian cinema and is a nod to the rising modernity of the industry, it also acknowledges the impact that the industry has allowed and the societal change, however minute, that even the most typical of Bollywood has allowed. This allows for even more possibility to incite change as Bollywood transition to depict more serious social issues in modern contexts.