Item numbers are never questioned: Shyam Benegal

He was awarded the highest honour in Indian cinema, the Dadasaheb Phalke Award along with National Film Awards several times. But Shyam Benegal, one of the foremost filmmakers of India, was not into popular cinema. In fact, his oeuvre was central to the history of the alternative cinema movement in India.

Benegal's career was at its peak in the 70s. Today there is nothing like art cinema - it has merged with the mainstream.

He has kept pace with changing market trends and audience tastes as is evident from his shift to comedy with Welcome to Sajjanpur in which he enters mainstream territory, casting young and popular Bollywood stars in the lead role. Benegal was in the city for a seminar. DNA finds out a little more about the immensely talented director and where Indian cinema has evolved from.

What are your views about modernity in cinema? "Modernity is a ridiculous distortion of reality. Today every art form seems confused; the nine essential emotions are nowhere to be seen. It has definitely evolved but technology has made up for the lack of skills in modern cinema. Now there are item numbers that have no connection with the narrative but when audience attention is lagging they come up from time to time. But Indian audience doesn't question that."

What prompted you to take up filmmaking? "It was the glamour of the industry that prompted me to take it up as a career. Also, there were certain subjects that I wanted to deal with and cinema seemed the best medium to do so. And, moreover, you were always in the news without really making any," says Benegal honestly.

"I consider myself really fortunate that I have seen India just after its Independence when a sense of community prevailed. I grew up in a milieu where you had a mixed community. One never had a problem of communal disharmony. And houses were also made such that there was a lot of interaction with others but today I confess I don't even know my neighbours. Because urban lifestyle couldn't re-establish that essence of a community, the same goes for cinema," he says. 

So does he ever look back at his works? "Actually, I don't because it's fatal. To tell the truth, the moment I finish making a film, I forget about it. The umbilical cord is cut; I cannot stay with that film any longer."