Image of Hindi Picture

I wanted to write something on contemporary Hindi mainstream cinema (other than appreciating LSD and Udaan) but I couldn’t find my way through those formula movies releasing one after another. I was eagerly waiting for Anuraag Kashyap production, Bejoy Naambiar’s debut film Shaitan to release for its supposed claim promising something on the lines on David Fincher. Well it too turned out to be a formula Hollywood story except for some gripping experimental scenes. I was still searching for some silver lining because it was Anuraag Kashyap and guess what? I got mine. It was the most visible and appealing posters seen everywhere. I agree the posters were not made by him but still encouraging and identifying creativity matters.

Shaitan’s poster is superimposition of the images of lead characters on the ink blots of Rorschach test (or simple ink blot test). In psychology Rorschach test is used to examine a person’s personality characteristics and emotional functioning. In shaitan’s context it provokes underlying thought disorder in people reluctant to describe their thinking processes openly. In this test the patients are subjected to ten ink blots having perfect bilateral symmetry on a separate white card (Five inkblots are of black ink, two are of black and red ink and three are multicoloured) and based on their reactions and perceptions about the blots conclusions are drawn about their motivations, response tendencies, etc. So when the slogan of the movie says “Face your inner shaitan” it appropriately refers to the ink blot test. It’s like, it tells you to test your reluctant emotions and tendencies.

Some of these cards are often perceived as threatening with subject being in an inferior position while some others are said to provoke the sexual drive. Even though we may not know this consciously, the poster has done its job in the Freudian way.

Another poster which caught my eyes on the similar lines was DevD’s surreal poster. In this Dev is a shown devoid of any expression. He is wearing sunglasses reflecting smoky images of him in it and his pink shiny lips are shown abnormally large with suggestive pink smoke coming out of it. It is illogical for anyone to have such large lips in the objective reality. That is actually the whole point of the poster. It manifests a reality higher than the objective reality that we are accustomed with and hence logic of objective reality will fail to explain it. The higher reality (in the movie) is Dev the protagonist is overpowered by his innate instinctual drives like sex, anger, etc. which are symbolized by his huge pink lips disproportionate with his face. Drug addict and an alcoholic Dev is overpowered by his desires to the extent that they often fail to communicate with his waking consciousness. This is signified by his sunglasses and the images in it. These smoky and smudgy images show his consciousness trapped in the rim of his sunglasses. He is also shown being hit by the cupid’s arrow signifying his love. It might be this arrow which caused the aforementioned deformity in him. The poster completely describes the character of Dev and also gives it a modern look.

Surreal posters for movies have a long tradition and DevD is no exception. When it comes to surrealist movies one name that occurs to me is the surreal film maker and an important figure in the surrealist movement- Luis Bunuel. In fact I found a stark resemblance of DevD poster to Bunuel’s The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie. It is about the so called high class society (the bourgeois) and their hypocrisy, intense fears of public humiliation, prejudice, snobbery, etc. Some of the other posters which capture the mood, tone and the filmmaker’s attitude appropriately are love sex aur dhokha, Dhobi ghat and delhi 6. We will get back to you on similar lines. In the meanwhile keep watching this space and let us know your views.

This post is an entry to the Reel-Life Bloggers contest organized by wogma.com and reviewgang.com