WRITE EFFORTS

The last few years have seen change within the monolith structure of Bollywood.

The second Indian Screenwriters Conference hopes to start a new chapter for Indian film writing

The last few years have seen change within the monolith structure of Bollywood. At such a time, the role of the screenwriter is pivotal to carry it forward but where hundreds of talents wash up on the shores of a harsh, cut-throat industry, the screenwriter is a species that needs to be protected. The second Indian Screenwriters Conference, that was organised weekend at the Indira Gandhi Development Research Institute near Film City (Mumbai), saw a sea of writers, directors, technicians and students from the film fraternity.

Spread over 10 sessions in two days, the conference addressed issues such as screenwriters’ rights, standards for remuneration, fees and royalty. Aatish Kapadia, Vinod Rangnath, Rajesh Dubey, Rajkumar Hirani, Abbas Tyrewala, Abhijat Joshi, Subhash Ghai, Anurag Kashyap, Kamlesh Pandey, Rakeysh Mehra, Anurag Basu and Sriram Raghavan were amongst the others speaking at the conference.

It also paid tribute to recently deceased playwright Vijay Tendulkar’s works. Govind Nihalani, who adapted Tendulkar’s screenplay for his 1980 film Akrosh, talked on Tendulkar’s work.

The tribute formed an apt backdrop for a session this year dedicated to the ‘politics of the script’ with Prakash Jha. “There is an attempt now to come out and talk about issues, though still with some reservations. Films like Mumbai Meri Jaan and A Wednesday are trying. It also depends on the changes in the socio-political scenario over the coming months. But this is certainly an exciting time for young writers, with the sheer range of films out there,” explains Jha.

Even though some may consider the politics of these films questionable, Nihalani was optimistic. “These efforts need to be lauded and critiqued. And they should be given time to mature,” he said.

The first conference held in August 2006 was a move towards creating a common platform where screenwriters could meet and discuss their craft, its limitations and logistics.

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“There is rank exploitation in the film industry. Now there are a few names backed by big banners that have the safety of adequate, timely remuneration. But the huge majority doesn’t,” said Anjum Rajabali, teacher of scriptwriting at the Film and Television Institute, Pune, and the brain behind the conference.

Screenwriter Thani was skeptical. “One still can’t go up to the people with the money and talk percentages. So I would hope that something more concrete comes out of this year’s session,” he says.