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Journalism of Courage
Fashion gets an A certificate. Director Madhur Bhandarkar protests and tells us why this film is special
Corporate and Page 3 were movies that provided a realistic view into the trials and tribulations of the rich and famous. Madhur Bhandarkar says people in society, their lives and issues have always fascinated him, so, naturally, it was imperative that a film on fashion would soon follow. “All society parties have models and designers as guests. I wanted to highlight this fraternity through a film,” says Bhandarkar in a telephonic interview. Fashion is ready for release on October 29 but much to Bhandarkar’s dismay has been given an A certificate, though he says he removed all possible objectionable content. “The censor board have their own opinions and one has to understand that,” he states philosophically.
Bhandarkar’s last film Traffic Signal, that narrates a depressing story of beggars and hawkers at red lights, didn’t really work. “Though the idea had been on my mind, I did not immediately start working on
Fashion. Otherwise the audience would have labelled me as someone who only makes films on high society,” he continues.
There’s a lot of hype about Fashion, about how it exposes the dark side of the glamour industry but Bhandarkar rubbishes the trivia. “It views the fashion world from the perspective of the middle-class man who comes home after a nine-to-five job and turns on the TV set to see models walking on the ramp. His idea of the fashion industry ends there. I take that audience behind the ramp into the professional and personal lives of the models and designers,” he explains. Bhandarkar’s style of cinema has coined a new phrase in Bollywood, ‘middle cinema’. The film stars Priyanka Chopra (who plays Meghna Mathur) in the lead along with a host of real life models. It’s Bhandarkar’s most expensive venture yet, with budgets exceeding Rs 40 crore. “I visited many fashion weeks in Delhi and Mumbai, spoke with choreographers, model coordinators, designers and buyers to give the film authenticity,” says Bhandarkar. His next film, Jail, explores lives of inmates.
