Bollywood And Cops
Apart from the much talked about theme of adultery; another subject that is surreptitiously overtaking our cinema is that of the cops. Manufactured from different strata of filmmaking we have already viewed three films on this subject- Khakee, Ab Tak Chhappan and Gangaajal. And, a quick glance at the forthcoming roster of films reveals that there are some more in the offing that will color the silver screen khakee very soon (Dev, Aan, Police Force and Garv to name a few).
If we analyze the number of films where there have been cops (not even as a leading actor), the films have only rubbed in the fact the cops are bad, and they should be avoided. So much so, there is a general dread of the cops in the general public.
Many top cops have argued that the films have always shown the profession in bad light. Whether art imitates life or life imitates art, is something that has not been proven ever. I do not think that films can be such an influence as to have such a deep impact nationally on the collective awareness of the common man. If the man in khakhi is shown as a rogue more often than not, then I am sorry, the police have themselves to blame for it. After all, if we pick up the newspapers, we do read more about their devilry than their dare-devilry; we witness more of their vanity than valor; we are subject to more of their salaciousness than sagacity. Invariably, in any crisis situation, it is the army that is called for, leaving the effectiveness of the police force again a question mark in the minds of the hoi polloi. Hence to this effect, the art is showing life in its full replesendent reflection. (In the recently released Zameen, Abhishek Bachhcan, the cop, is merely an accessory to Ajay Devgan, the army man, who plots and masterminds the entire operation to deal with plane hijackers).
Also, very strangely, this is one field that has thrown up very few eminent personalities. We all can glibly recite the names of great writers, well-known economists, distinguished army officers and renowned lawyers. But cops…well, apart from K P S Gill and Kiran Bedi the tongue gets invariably stuck. With a police force running into several thousands, it’s astonishing that we have such small number of prominent policemen. If this is an indication of the ills that surround this ilk, then, the numbers of films are definitely justified.
However and whatever the grammar of narration, our films, despite the overwhelming presence of these men in uniform, have often viewed the profession with a parochial paradigm of standard stereotypes: if it’s the hero playing the cop, then he would be moral and upright and will definitely get bogged down by the ’system’ (bureaucracy, politicians et al) (Ardh Satya, Khakee, Police Officer, to name just a few hit ones); If it’s the villain playing the cop, then, well, he will be the blackest of rogue to ever live (do I even have to give an example here?); if it’s the comedian, then he would be the buffoon of the first order, without any sense of duty or direction ( again, do I have to list out examples of these films?)! And if nothing else, then they are a bunch of extras that turn up in the denouement, sirens shrieking, lights blazing just when the hero has finished up his job of cleaning the villainous filth.
In general, our films have never actually delineated any profession in detail; most often, we would not even get the basic idea of what the hero does for a living- at the most, we will get a view of him sitting in front of a computer and pumping furiously into the keyboard without any semblance of coherence anywhere or witness him entering the office with a deluge of employees throwing stiff salutations. What line of business? Er, sorry, the director does not care!
In this context, surprisingly, the police force has found a lot of interest by our filmmakers. Yet, only a handful of films have actually done justice to this very noble yet thankless profession. Most of the time, the hero would be a police officer for the sake of revenge for his mother/father/sister; in others, he would be the means to show the political grunge of the country/state.
Barring an odd Ardh Satya (to an extent) or Ab Tak Chhappan (very recently), no film has actually delved into the psyche of a film maker, to analyze what he might be going through- a job where you daily have to meet the utter junk of society (sometimes the deepest grime of crime), with a pay scale that is paltry, there would be immense frustrations, and insecurities and fears. But on this, there is a deafening silence from our filmmakers- more so, in the commercial film strapping. At this juncture, the only film that I recall is Satyamev Jayate, which did try to crack open a policeman’s hardened brain. Otherwise, all that we have had are the innumerable Zanjeers or Deewars or Shahenshahs or Pathar Ke Phools or Auzaars or Vardis- where the main motive was always personal vendetta or corruption, and nothing beyond that, except for a few stray songs with the heroine.
Leave alone, the psyche and all, its perhaps asking for a bit too much from Bollywood, what has always crossed my mind, that cannot the hero be shown as a police officer, and show him do his job, just like any other, without his father being killed or his sister being raped, just because he is a policeman!
A policeman also solves crimes. Again, this facet has been totally ignored by the collective fraternity of film producers. Perhaps, because murder mysteries do not convert to repeat value (hence, resulting in low revenues), our filmmakers have constantly shied away from making honest and true-to-life mysteries where the cop solves the problem without getting bogged by the system or the hero raping his sister! A recent exception was the well-made Samay, and, earlier, to a small extent Police Public (but there too, there was talk of corrupt system, duty and all that crap) But such films is more exception, than rule. The rest just stick to the standard pattern with alarming regularity.
But unfortunately, all that the films do is depict the problems, and alleviate the symptoms, but do nothing to address this complex theme. Perhaps, our films and their structure are not equipped enough to deal with this complex issue. If that is the case, maybe Bollywood should curb the prolificacy of such films.
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