The Cult Of Filth?

“The film is strictly for adults,” said Aamir Khan in what looked like a mix between a Tata Sky ad and an anti-smoking campaign as the three actors of  Delhi Belly teased him about ruining his own reputation. While MBA students are running after him to learn marketing tips, filmwallahs are scratching their heads, trying to figure out the secret ingredient behind ‘Brand Aamir.’ Delhi Belly is being touted as the next cult film, making way for a new trend in cinema.

What trend…if I may ask? The trend of watching people defecate, the trend of punctuating conversations with swear words because apparently, evolved vocabulary is a thing of the past and all your school and college education can be put to good use only when you cook up an original cuss word yourself. The film undoubtedly has way stronger content than any of its slapstick counterparts but I’m afraid of the fad it has started. I may sound right out of a 70s time machine but to me the actual enjoyable humor of the film is like a walk in mucky waters to reach lush green pastures.

In a recent interview, Imran Khan remarked that Aamir Khan is a “soft target” because “he’s a good and self-righteous man who never uses his influence.” Well to start with, he managed to pass a film through the censors albeit with an ‘A’ certificate but I know of many 15-16-year-old cousins who’ve already watched it. So subconsciously, the advertising has worked in favor of the film, pulling larger audiences than expected. The point is clear– with aggressive promotions and clever marketing; Aamir Khan has made vulgar fashionable. Controversy was a tool always over-abused by many producers to reach the throne of box-office success but Aamir is the only one who holds the key to making a foolproof, profit generating film. A popular joke doing the rounds is that Aamir Khan can sell s#!t…evidently so.

In the middle of intense debates with friends over the movie, I realize that the film’s USP is exactly that– ‘debatability.’ It has generated enough hoopla to arouse curiosity and make you go watch it just to know which side you’re on or simply to see how outrageous the content is, a mouthful of which is the reiterative DK Bose that younger kids are humming nonchalantly and older kids are sniggering over.

Expletives and sexual innuendos in films are nothing new but now have many takers after brand Aamir endorsed it. Until the film is in theatres there will be selective viewing but when it enters the DVD and online downloading domain, it will be watched by all and sundry. Then school teachers and parents will complain of television and films affecting young minds; not that there’s any more damage left to be done. The problem definitely is permissiveness and what limits will be repeatedly crossed simply to ‘entertain.’ While it’s true that liberalism leads to growth and acceptance of the dark and dirty so that it’s no longer the alluring forbidden fruit; but simultaneously we also have to bid adieu to filtered, reponsible content. In short, what may have been previously said in private or in certain contexts will now be said openly because it is cool and acceptable and then parents can simply correct the grammar of a young son or daughter by saying “Beta, it’s f*** with an –ing.”

A look at past ‘cult’ films like Dil Chahta Hai, Rang De Basanti, Munnabhai series reveals that they have a repeat value and inspirational content that makes you ‘feel good’ every time you watch it. I doubt if Delhi Belly fits the bill unless manipulated promotions  lend it the ‘cult’ title but it has to stand the long test of decades to prove itself as one. If it does, then many movie buffs like me will mourn the end of what good cinema used to stand for but luckily the rise of Zoya Akhtar has managed to restore some faith. Just my opinion but if there’s a movie that should be called representative of the youth then it is Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara. The movie has reminded me that at times the purpose of watching films is to feel good about life, human existence and to let go, and it is a nice feeling to hold onto. And because the feel good factor in it comes without any filth, in my book, ZNMD has already won the race to be a cult film.

Vidhi Salla is writer, blogger, movie buff and traveller. She  writes movie reviews and also contributes informative travel articles to websites. She gave up a lucrative corporate career to pursue creative writing, that she strongly believes is her calling.