Bombay Talkies Response

I thought Bombay Talkies was a charming, quirky tribute to 100 years of cinema. Rather than focusing on one short in particular, I wanted to take a step back and delve deeper into the connections between all the shorts – why were these four stories chosen, and what sorts of messages might the producer be trying to send to the audience? On the surface level, the cinema theme was apparent in each film. The first story mentioned tabloids and brought up the topic of being honest and oneself in the public eye. The second story followed the life of a struggling, aspiring actor and was a nod to the all-too-often ignored, but instrumental, extras in movies. The third story featured Katrina Kaif as the young boy’s inspiration and talked about following one’s dreams and breaking into the Bollywood industry. The fourth story highlighted fan mentality and actor worship in India. But beyond the cinema aspect, I also noticed that each story brought up themes of love and empowerment, but in very different and sometimes subtle ways. There was also some darkness expressed in each of these themes, which I will also explore.

While Ajeeb Dastaan Hai Yeh is about homosexuality, that aspect of the story was pretty devoid of love. However, it did broach the topic of self-love and having the self-respect and freedom to express oneself honestly. Dev had repressed a part of himself for so long and seemed to be more at peace at the end. Also, Gayatri became empowered as she realized that her failing marriage was not due to her own shortcomings. The scene where she removes her makeup in front of the mirror, symbolizing her freedom (both from her husband and from her negative perceptions of herself), was very powerful. However, we don’t know what happens to Dev or Avinash at the end; we see Dev sitting on an empty bridge with a beggar girl, and the scene ends in darkness and night. A lot of Dev and Avinash’s personal demons and issues still went unresolved.

In Star, we see the main character’s love of acting and his love for his daughter, and it is touching how he ran home at the end to tell everything to his daughter and make her happy, truly showcasing the father-daughter bond. We could also say that he was empowered to stop being lazy and take the opportunities that came to him. However, once again, the short is not entirely happy. He left before he could collect his payment and give his contact information to the movie people, missing his chance for a big break. It is highly probable that he will simply continue to live his life as always, and this is alluded to at the end of the short where the ending scene of him sleeping is the same as the opening scene.

In Sheila Ki Jawani, the young boy is empowered to follow his dreams of being a dancer, and we also see him coming to terms with himself and beginning to love who he is. The love between the brother and sister is also an important part of the short. Unfortunately, the boy’s final performance is shown as a fleeting moment in life, enhanced by the slow motion and lack of sound (almost like a flashback). The boy will continue to be oppressed by his parents, and we see in Ajeeb Dastaan Hai Yeh what he could potentially end up like.

In the final short, Murabba, we view the love that the son has for his father and the lengths he is willing to go to fulfill his father’s dying wish. We also see a more obsessive love in Amitabh Bachchan’s stalkerish fans. When the dying father has a revelation at the end of the film, having viewed history repeating itself, it could be argued that he was empowered to become free of the fan mentality and realize that family bonds are stronger and what help us get through life. However, it was sad that when the father talked about his father eating the honey, he said that his father’s prolonged life might have been due to either the honey or the ants. He never said it might be because he himself ate some of the honey. Here, we see a departure from the typical, happy-go-lucky, magical movie endings that talk about the power of love.

In countless classic Bollywood films, we see cheesy love stories that present love as the answer to all the problems in life. However, Bombay Talkies takes a different approach by commenting on the true nature of humanity and conveying that while love is important, it cannot solve all problems in life. In doing so, Bombay Talkies perhaps hints at a future, avant-garde Bollywood that is more risqué, willing to address social issues and taboos, and willing to acknowledge that happy films are not reality.