NEW DELHI: Filmmakers are constantly trying to take on-screen romance to a new level but the audiences are not yet adventurous enough to appreciate them. For this they blame “the young movie-going crowd” and the mindset of the people.
If the box-office collections of the Farah Khan-Boman Irani film “Shirin Farhad Ki Toh Nikal Padi” have raised the question whether Indian audiences are ready to watch mature romances, experts are hoping the best for Rani Mukerji-starrer “Aiyyaa”, a one-of-its-kind love story.
“One should blame the Indian mindset for all this that always relates love and romance to young people. When they see older couple getting in such relationships, they get uncomfortable,” Pulkit Sharma, a clinical psychologist at VIMHANS, told IANS.
“Even on occasions like Valentine’s Day, brands and companies showcase young people celebrating and buying gifts for each other,” he said.
But aren’t there couples marrying in their late 30s, 40s or even later in real life?
Unfortunately, the percentage is low, said Sharma.
He said it will take some more years for our society to accept this change.
But the not-so-encouraging response has not deterred filmmakers from experimenting with unique scripts.
“Aiyyaa”, produced by Anurag Kashyap and starring southern actor Prithviraj, is one such film that tries to showcase a mature love.
It is about Maharashtrian girl Meenakshi Deshpande (Rani), who lives in a Bollywood-style fantasy world and tries to woo Malayali man Surya (Prithviraj). Failure is not a defeat for them — it’s just a delay.
For instance, expert in candy-floss romance, Karan Johar says he too is open to the idea of elderly romance, despite the fact that his “Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna”, about the same, turned out to be a damp squib.
He told IANS: “I believe that the success of such films depend upon the filmmaker, who wants to make it. If I’m motivated by the subject, I’ll love to make it. If it comes to me and I like the screenplay, I have no problem making it. If the characters have a connect, any film can do well, be it any storyline.”
(Aastha Khurana, IANS)
