Singing And Dancing In The Rain and a Bit on Creativity

This post is dedicated to memory and nostalgia. This post is dedicated to the song Aaj Rapat Jai to Hume Na Uthaiyo from Namak Halal. I saw this movie when I was in class 2. Yes, very small, yet to understand frailty of love and dance and singing in the rain. I watched it with my eyes wide open. Like I was in some new world, other than the world I was in. Yes, I had seen this movie quiet a number of times as I grew up. But the other day, I came across this song again. And I saw it. I realized, they won't make anymore Hindi Movie like this. I won't rate Namak Halal a highly sophisticated movie, but it had its charm and grandeur. The laughing Arjun Singh when he realizes that the girl he loves is actually with her brother, the sizzling rain, the white sari, the sexual tension, so subtly portrayed, nothing like the ones shown nowadays. The most recent singing and dancing in the rain concept I had seen was in Hum Tum, and it was nowhere near this song. Yes, there was a scene from Chameli, Kareena Kapoor in it. Kishore Kumar's magic voice,ah, even a metalhead like me wants to forget what's going on around me and dive deep into this celebration of funfilled love, a love which you won't find now. Bollywood movie, yes some good movies are coming out, but its nothing like those old school movies. Plagiarism was rampant then, example, satte pe satta was straight from seven brides from seven brothers, but still the director added enough indianess to make you glue through. Also the public did not had much access to those movies. But nowadays the blatant copying by Indian Directors just make me feel sick and nauseated. Remember the scene in Jab We Met, where Geet and Aditya jumps into a pool, it was a rip off from My Sassy Girl, a Korean movie. I find Indian Movie Directors lacking even the creativity to rip off from various sources, since My Sassy Girl was again a remaked in Hindi, titled Ugly and Pagli, with the very ugly and pagli Mallika Sherawat playing the role. I was like mad, I was insane. She is nowhere close to Jun Ji Hyun, the lead actress in My Sassy Girl. Ah, you Indian Director, ah, get some life. Mallika Sherawat and the innocent Jun, it was such a pain in the ass. I must say, Sanjay Gupta started the trend of copying from Korean Movies. Park Chan Wook masterpiece Oldboy, Sanjay Gupta crappiece Zinda. Yet, he couldn't dare and show the incest scene between the father and daughter lest the indian sensitivity gets hurt. Showeast, the one which distributed Oldboy was supposed to action against Sanjay Gupta. But none happened. Anyways, I should thank Mr. Gupta for giving me the access to the world of Korean Cinema.
Ah, now back to Singing and Dancing in the Rain. As, I was saying, remember Shri 420, the song Pyar Hua Iqrar Hua, the scared Nargis, the Charlie Chaplin-esque Raj Kapoor, another song worth mentioning. I won't mind saying, Raj Kapoor was the singing and dancing Chaplin.
Now, remember Alex from Clockwork Orange, singing and dancing in the rain, wonderful scene. Hats off to Kubrick.
Yes, this post is getting like a cocktail, but I am enjoying writing it.
Rain, has always played an important role in the craft of cinema. Be it Cinema Paradiso or be it Saptapadi. It was rain all the way. Rain is the imagery, Rain is the metaphor, of pain and joy both. Ah rain.
Most hindi movies do have a rain and song dance sequence? Why? Its difficult for me to answer. Its like going to the pub and wondering what to drink. Where I am stuck, why do have it? Most Hindi Movie Directors say they want to portray reality. I think, in reality, there is no background music where there is a boy and a girl dancing madly to the incessant rain. Magic realism. And its a crooked version of it. I wonder when the meaning will settle in. Till then, aaj rapat jaye to hame nah uthaiyp.
Next post, will be most probably, the review of Challenge Nibi Nah Sala.