Friends no more in Bollywood

For decades now, the industry’s been witness to the making or breaking of careers stemming out of filmi associations and camps that run thicker than blood.

However, what’s new is the shifting of loyalties that’s been seen in the past few years, and have become even more prominent since the industry divided into two major Khan camps — Salman and Shah Rukh’s.

So, while SRK loyalist Farah Khan moved on to do films with rivals Akshay Kumar and Salman Khan, even Yash Chopra does not guarantee the star’s presence in their films anymore. Vipul Shah’s next production Force does not star ‘good friend’ Akshay, but John Abraham.

Interestingly, until the tiff between the two Khans, the stars and filmmakers have always vehemently denied the existence of such campism in B-Town. But, the rift between SRK and Salman has now highlighted the dilemma a filmmaker or actor has to go through  when it comes to choosing one star over the other, like Abhinav Kashyap recently did, when he had to make a choice between working with Salman or SRK. And an increasing number of B-Towners are now either trying to steer clear of these camps or don’t mind crossing borders over to the ‘enemy lines’ every now and then.

Industry watchers point out that this shift in loyalties is reflective of the emphasis on the industry now largely being economics driven alone.

“Being a part of the camp had its own fringe benefits, but now they realize that there‘s more at stake too. The dynamics in the camps have undergone a sea change since the past few years. They realize that the audiences doesn’t care about camps, but about good content and impressive performances. So, filmmakers are not wary of approaching stars across boards either,” says trade analyst Komal Nahta. A senior film-maker on conditions of anonymity shares, “If a star’s not clicking, film-makers now don’t mind reviewing their choice.

A flop does change equations now.” Says trade analyst Amod Mehra, “Back in the ’50s and ’60s people stood by their ‘friends’ no matter what. Being a part of these camps provided a sense of security. But today, they leave their options open to a great extent,” he explains. The audience is certainly not complaining as they get to see newer combinations with actors and film-makers on the big screen.