New Delhi: Erotica, in a nutshell, is such a piece of art which has the potential of sexually arousing the consumers, spectators in our case. There have always been two very distinct ways of seeing an erotica. You either judge the art scenario by taking a look at an erotica or you see it as an eruption point of dominated spirits. In both the cases, it is likely to provide you a thought process which can lead to some solutions of contemporary problems. See, the mathematics is pretty simple - you understood the problematic situation and then proceeded to the next step that is adding values to the solution finding process.
The Hindi film industry saw the emergence of director Ajay Bahl's erotica 'BA Pass' last Friday in which the story revolves around a 20-something guy Mukesh (Shadab Kamal). The extremely gloomy financial situation pushes the boy to become a gigolo who satisfies sexually deprived but loaded cougars. Losing the cherry proves to be the beginning of a moral downfall which culminates at a point where there is nothing more left to lose.
'BA Pass' is melancholic in its approach with a very healthy dose of sexually charged scenes but somehow it manages to keep the audience's attention to the fast changing surrounding of Mukesh. This is something that various directors are trying to do since many years, especially the ones from the Bhatt camp.
Their characters are invariably the by-products of suppressed desires, a fundamentally wrong concept. Emraan Hashmi and others who try to copy his attacking attitude, portray their foray into the world of crime as a result of their efforts to come at par with the rich girl's family. It may look satisfactory on the outset but such an 'arrangement' (Of course provided by the commercial directors) takes the attention away from the real issues. Films such as 'Murder', 'Blood Money' and 'Jannat' present the criminals as a creation of mindless economic liberalisation but then the same film starts to glorify the free market economy via songs and exotic locations. These are completely devoid of scenes based on the lack of education and grim poverty. As expected, it leaves the audience confused about what to take home, ideologically.
'BA Pass', on the other hand, deals with stark realities that most of the migrants in metropolitans have felt at some point of time. This film is also flawed and one would wonder about Mukesh's inability in getting a job but the sensibilities with which Ajay Bahl has handled the camera infuses some depth to 'BA Pass'.
His hero is not a superman, neither he is a cold blooded criminal, still he is very much the part of an alarmingly consumerist society. Bhatt camp's 'Jism 2' and 'Murder 3' have leads who deal on a completely different platform where they don't remain a part of the typical urban society. Shilpa Shukla, Rajesh Sharma and Shadab not only look real but they also represent the smaller aspirations which are not cinematic.
Undoubtedly, this is the transition phase for Bollywood which can pave the way for more meaningful films. This path will mainly be travelled by those films which belong to the neo-noir category because of their non-judgemental approach towards crime and other grey things. The filmmakers who want to walk this road will have to inculcate their ventures with more subtle and thought provoking scenes, otherwise we will be discussing the same topic even after another five years.####
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