GUWAHATI, July 20 - Eminent filmmaker Buddhadeb Dasgupta today said that Indian cinema has become unnecessarily verbose and the director, very often, ends up losing the plot in his or her attempt to feed the audience with too many things within a specified time.
�The habit of telling the audience everything categorically through shots and words has made Indian cinema too talkative. Cinema should be told like poetry where the audience should be drawn to read between the lines,� the national award-winning director from West Bengal opined while delivering the KK Handiqui Memorial Lecture on the topic �Art and Experience in Celluloid� organised by the KK Handiqui State Open University here.
Dasgupta, who was specifically critical of the new-age filmmakers, said that 99.9 per cent of them rely too heavily on manipulative images, which is detrimental to the cause of filmmaking.
�Images should be absolutely pure and new. Essentially, they should be based on your interactions with nature and real-life experiences. It is due to lack of such images that Indian cinema has not been able to make a real dent in the world stage, barring a select few,� felt the internationally acclaimed filmmaker.
�Sometimes knowingly and sometimes unknowingly, they (new-age directors) are found trapped by manipulative images. Once that happens, you are gone as a filmmaker. By resorting to such acts, they not only become dishonest to the society but to themselves as well. Making films are like organising an event for them,� Dasgupta, also a renowned poet, rued.
He asserted that good cinema is like good poetry and music, which remain etched to one�s memory for years.
�Like music and poetry, a good movie helps in rediscovering oneself. By loving cinema, I have become a better person. I always believed that there is some sort of hidden magic that revolves around every good flick. Without that intangible magic, cinema falls apart to bits and pieces,� he said, adding, �My recipe or mantra for a good film is a blend of three components � magic, reality and dream.�
Dasgupta, who has a number of award-winning movies to his credit including Bagh Bahadur, Charachar and Kalpurush, said that although he had failed a number of times in life, he stood firm to his ethics and never compromised with his way of filmmaking. �I can wait for years to make a movie I believe in,� he added.
Earlier, Vice Chancellor of the KK Handiqui State Open University Dr Hitesh Deka in his inaugural speech said that cinema should act like a guiding light for society and not just be a mode of entertainment.
National award-winning filmmaker Jahnu Baruah and a host of other noted personalities from various spheres of life were present on the occasion.
