If you’re a true blue lover of the very art of movie-making and the kind of talents that have blossomed to the hearts of the masses in the recent years – solely based on the strong conviction to their gifts (Rajkumar, Nawaz, Radhika Apte, etc), you’d also realize how deeply prejudiced and partial Indian movie awards have been all these years, as they have drastically failed to do their job of recognizing such talents.
From the brainless, sleazy punchlines to some redundant performances with 200 dancers on stage, almost every “big” film award in India has solely concentrated on yielding tall TRP numbers and hefty paychecks through multiple sponsorship. It really does seem all about the money and popularity, and very little or nothing to do with acknowledging the best cinematic works of the year.
Some of the winners and nominees and the lack of transparency in the voting process, really does highlight how ‘rigged’ the whole thing is. The proof is in the pudding.
So when this year’s Filmfare award nominations were announced and brainless disasters like ‘Zero’ received the top nods (mainly because they were backed by powerful names in the industry), while critically acclaimed small-budget masterpieces likes Tumbbad, Manto and Mukkabaaz faced unabashed neglect, internet burst out with disgust, calling out those nameless, faceless entities behind the machinery, who have yet again tried to pull-in big stars, ditching the actual deserving contenders.
Once again, flamboyance seems to be winning over substance.
Frustrated with the whole thing, like the rest of us, seasoned actor Manoj Bajpayee took to Twitter to express how his 2018-released critically acclaimed flick, ‘Gali Guleiyan’ was not even recognized by those in power, pointing at how the ‘exploitation continues.’
So used to the fact that all the films of mine which are highly acclaimed nationally and internationally don’t even get a place in the nominations list of so called big mainstream awards here forget about winning.creative pursuit and exploitation continue….! @GaliGuleiyan pic.twitter.com/9JfJDn3tBI
— manoj bajpayee (@BajpayeeManoj) March 13, 2019
Throwing a sarcastic jibe at the awards, Fimmaker Sanjay Gupta responded to Bajpayee’s post insisting the actor, like most of his mainstream contemporaries, should too have learned how to ‘dance on stage’ to be recognized in the same manner.
Bhai kab se keh raha hoon stage par naachna seekh lo. Tum ho ki maante hi nahin…
— Sanjay Gupta (@_SanjayGupta) March 13, 2019
Manoj Bajpayee may feel neglected by the likes of Filmfare and Screen awards, but the actor was recently honored by the government of India with a Padma Shree – for his outstanding contribution in the field of cinematic excellence.
Here’s to hoping a change is gonna come, real soon.