IIMC’s Filmy Chakkar 3: Understanding Context Of Song & Dance In Indian Cinema

Dhenkanal: Film enthusiasts were treated to Piyush Roy’s docufilm, ‘Pleasure, Prejudice, Pride — The way of India Filmmaking’ on the second day of Filmy Chakkar 3 at the Indian Institute of  Mass Communication (IIMC), Dhenkanal.

Setting the context, Roy explained that while ‘prejudice and pride’ are the societal representation of culture, gender, history, etc, ‘pleasure’ is symbolised by dance and songs in movies, .

Elaborating on a quote by social essayist Mukul Kesavan, Roy said, “Cinema in India didn’t dance to western tunes. It marched to its own beat through which the basic recognition of Indian classical themes can be understood in the Indian cinema.”

Movies like ‘Alam Ara’, ‘Mughal-e-Azam’ and ‘Teesri Kasam’ were the earliest representations of Indian classics in which songs, dance and music formed the elements that led to the evolution of Indian cinematic culture.

Cinema is the culmination of all arts — painting, singing and craft. The experimental nature of filmmaking with this amalgamation has provided viewers and critics an arena to explore and understand the content.

“There is no right and wrong in cinema as viewers choose what to watch. For critics and reviewers, films are a document” said Roy.

The workshops curated by Filmi Chakkar 3 aimed at building the knowledge of film criticism and it’s appreciation.