Why India's first prez is biggest Bhojpuri hero

Soumya Mukerjiu00a0brings you a first look at Cinema Bhojpuri, a new release that documents a 'frivolous' film industry that's enticed actresses from Kolkata and Chennai, the biggest Bollywood superstars, even India's first president

A dainty dusk descends on Cinema Bhojpuri author Avijit Ghosh's office, but being a journalist is no joy at that hour. His tone is terse, his words wandering into the work realm. "Sorry, you might have to hold if I get another call." But there's none. Instead, it's his calling that keeps us busy. "If a journalist wants to be a good author, he must discipline himself strictly," he emphasises, sharing his pre and post office writing regime. Ghosh rouses the author in him in the week, mostly, if not weekends. Much removed in manner and style, from his almost namesake Amitav Ghosh. There's a curious connection, though: Amitav watched Bhojpuri films like Mai Jaisan Bhauji Hamaar while researching for Sea of Poppies, Avijit delved into the cinema itself.


Superstar Ravi Kissen, who is considered the Amitabh Bachchan
of Bhojpuri cinema, shoots a passionate song sequence with actress
Apsara at a film set in Malad. PIC/ PRADEEP DHIVAR

The rest of the conversation unfolds in heady Hinglish, with so much to say in such little time. "India's first president Dr Rajendra Prasad (in his meeting with character actor Nasir Hussain) was a sure-shot inspiration for Bhojpuri cinema," he begins, "but an inspiration, not a pioneer. That certainly spurred the phenomenon, but the films would have come about anyway. It was mainly a question of time and money." Beyond the 1950s, no politician can take credit for the success of Bhojpuri-wood, he clears. Laloo, the least. "He took charge in 1990, and the years of his reign, and Rabri's, were the worst for Bhojpuri cinema. It was Sasura Bada Paisewala which changed the tide in 2004."

This compelled Ghosh to get going on his book. He dedicates it to Rupam, Mohan, Sapna and Moti Mahal -- the cinema halls of Arrah, an administrative town in Bihar where he fell in love with these films. Without regret.

"Every cinema has its own reasons to exist. It's true that some song and dance are risqu ufffd, but a lot of their themes don't exist in Hindi cinema. The zamindar for a villain has disappeared from Bollywood. Bhojpuri films keep the non-NRI life alive," he observes.

The book made Ghosh travel to Benaras, Mumbai and beyond to interview old and new stars like Kunal Singh, Rakesh Pandey and Ravi Kissen. "Ravi is an extremely articulate chap. He has a very astute understanding of the market," Ghosh muses. And, there's nothing called 'Bihari' cinema, he corrects during an inadvertent slip.

"Yes, there's Maithili, too," he rethinks, and when we wonder why that didn't do as well as its big Bhojpuri brother, Ghosh is at a loss. "Maybe it was about initiative. I don't have an answer to that; I never thought of it that way." But what he did has enough to make you miss your Bolly pop for Balma 420.

6 questions for the author

What's the audience like?
Back in the '60s and '70s, it was local families. Now, it's mostly single men and migrants in Mumbai, Delhi, Punjab and such.

Didn't multiplexes have an adverse effect on these films?
It's the opposite, actually. With the advent of the multiplex culture, a certain kind of movies started coming into the picture; the India-shining, feel-good, stylish and urban kind.
The cinema of middle India went out of the picture, and this section started to grow disgruntled. This, in turn, gave rise to 'little cinema' -- the single cinema street flicks that make Bhojpuri cinema.u00a0

Are directors re-moulding their movies to suit the urban, upmarket viewer?
It's a catch 22 situation; there's no guarantee that a classier movie will draw more people. Of course, it will be interesting to see if such films are screened in multiplexes and draw huge crowds, but no one's ready for the gamble in this genre yet.u00a0u00a0

One star who can do wonders for the industry.
Aamir Khan. He once said his mom is from Benaras. He might have some empathy for the language, and will garner instant recognition.

The most important factors for this cinema survive in the Holly-Bolly obsessed world.u00a0
Conditions of theatres must improve. And regional films should never lose out on their local identity and flavour. The person who watches Bhojpuri cinema also watches Hindi films, but he comes back to Bhojpuri because it makes him love his land. The dialogues, songs, locales and subjects should always adhere to this logic.

What's Indian first prez got to do with Bhojpuri cinema?

Some time in the latter half of the 1950s, character actor Nasir Hussain met then president Dr Rajendra Prasad (left) at a film awards function in Mumbai. Hussain, remembered among Hindi film lovers as the caring vicar who brings up Amitabh Bachchan in Bollywood blockbuster Amar Akbar Anthony (1977), was tall and fair. 'Are you a Punjabi?' the President asked Hussain. When the actor replied that he was from Ghazipur district in eastern Uttar Pradesh, it was a moment of serendipity for Rajendra babu. He immediately started talking to him in Bhojpuri -- after all, India's first president was born in Jeeradei village in west Bihar's Bhojpuri-speaking Siwan district.

The conversation soon veered towards movies. Rajendra babu asked Hussain, 'Why don't you make a film in Bhojpuri?' The actor gently submitted that he was a mere character artiste and making a film required a lot of money. But Rajendra babu wasn't giving up and insisted, 'It is hard work, for sure. You also require a lot of courage. But you can do it.' The President, in fact, was articulating Nasir Hussain's own heartfelt desire. A couple of precedents had also inspired the character actor who had already made a name for himself playing Dharamdas, the protagonist's faithful servant in director Bimal Roy's Devdas (1955), the story of a young man who becomes an alcoholic when his family does not allow him to marry the woman he loves.

The encouragement Hussain got from the President prompted him into action. He had already penned the story of Ganga Maiya Tohe Piyari Chadhaibo which roughly means, O Mother Ganga I'll Offer You The Yellow Cloth.

The domino effect
Joginder Mahajan, who distributes Bhojpuri films in Delhi and Uttar Pradesh, succinctly sums up this phenomenon: 'It is like a non-vegetarian restaurant doing well, followed by others springing up in the neighbourhood. Delhi-based distributor Sanjay Mehta describes the scenario more politically. He calls it 'the Laloo phenomenon of cinema'.


Balma 420 (2006) has a couple of scenes shot in London

Eight Bhojpuri films you must see, and why
'Ganga Maiya Tohe Piyari Chadhaibo: For the first-rate acting and unforgettable songs.
'Bidesiya: For incomparable folk numbers and memorable dialogues like, 'Bhookha na jaane baasi bhat, neend na jaane tooti khat, preet na jaane jaat kujaat'.
'Hamaar Sansar: Because it authentically recreates rural India and shows how India used to think in the mid-1960s.
'Balam Pardesia: Super-hit of the late 1970s, which has Gorki patarki re (O lean and fair one), one of the most playfully romantic songs of Bhojpuri cinema.
'Dharti Maiya: Well-made social drama on the lines of Mother India. Padma Khanna's performance is excellent.
'Ganga Kinare Mora Gaon: One of the biggest hits of all time. You need to carry at least three handkerchiefs to wipe away your tears.
'Sasura Bada Paisewala: Revived the genre in the new millennium, offers coarse comedy, risqu ufffd songs and roaring melodrama.
'Nirahua Rickshawala: A perfect package of impressive action, emotion, drama, songs, and a kiss that was endlessly discussed by viewers.

Bihar-Bengal Express
In the 1960s, the Bhojpuri film industry had strong links with Kolkata's Tollywood, which provided technicians as well as actors for the genre. Films were processed in laboratories in Kolkata; even the sound recordings were conducted there. A few exceptions aside, that link has weakened over the decades.


Actress Rani Chatterjee is pretty much the Rani Mukerji of Bhojpuri cinema

Metamorphosis of the villain
With time, the genre's villains have changed. The zamindar and the money-lenders are no longer the favourite bad guys -- the local MLA or a bahubali with political patronage takes pride of place. Superhits of recent years -- Sasura Bada Paisewala, Panditji Bataeen Na Biyah Kab Hoee and Nirahua Rickshawala -- are vastly different from the early blockbusters. Sasura... blends comedy with family drama. The movie talks of family values while ensuring that the westernised heroine is tamed by the English-speaking hero whose soul is Bhojpuri.

Two-word titles not allowed
Like the Nasir Hussain films of the 1950s and 1960s, Tum Sa Nahin Dekha (1957), Jab Pyaar Kisi Se Hota Hai (1961), Bhojpuri films often have long titles, beginning with Ganga Maiya Tohe Piyari Chadhaibo. Sample some others: Jekra Charanwa Mein Lagle Paranwa (At Whose Feet Lies My Heart), Panditji Bataeen Na Biyah Kab Hoee? (Tell Me Panditji, When Will I Get Married?), Ho Gayeel Ba Pyaar Odhaniya Wali Se (I Have Fallen In Love With a Girl Wearing a Stole), Ego Chumma De Da Rajaji (Give Me A Kiss My Love).



They love the word Ganga
'Ganga' is the most common word in Bhojpuri film titles. The river, which passes through several Bhojpuri-speaking districts in both, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, is venerated by millions. This is why it's often equated with a goddess or a mother. Beginning with Ganga Maiya Tohe Piyari Chadhaibo, the name of the holy river, which flows through the Bhojpuri-speaking hinterland has figured in at least 25 movies and the list is still growing: Ganga Ghat, Ganga Saryu, Ganga Maiya Bhar Da Acharwa Hamaar, Ganga Kinare Mora Gaon, Ganga Maiya Tohar Kiriya, Dulha Ganga Paar Ke, Ganga Ki Beti, Ganga Hamaar Mai, Ganga Jaisan Bhauji Hamaar, Ganga Jwala...

Cinema Bhojpuri
Author: Avijit Ghosh
Price: Rs 250
Publisher: Penguin
Available at all leading bookstores