[Reader-list] No sex please, we're Maipuris: 3rd IF posting

[Rahul Asthana]

" It 
seems Manipur must be a place in Iran or Afghanistan,
not in democratic 
India."
Well, sorry to butt in with something which is
completely irrelevant to this thread.
But Manipur isnt really a place in "democratic"
India.Do words like "Irom Sharmila" or "AFSPA" ring a
bell?

--- mrsg at vsnl.com wrote:

> It is sickening to read how the Talibanisations of
> Manipuri film is being described in such a polite
> and rational way!! The facist underground censorship
> is being eulogised in the name of Manipuri culture.
> A male chauvinist dikat is described shamefully as
> "The Manipuris are a very conservative people. It's
> an article of faith among the Manipuris that women
> should not drink wine, not reveal too much cleavage,
> not go out late in the night, not laugh too loud,
> not have food before their husbands do and so on.
> These values get reflected in the Manipuri cinema."
> . It seems Manipur must be a place in Iran or
> Afghanistan, not in democratic India.
> 
> 
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Ranjan Yumnam <ranjanyumnam at gmail.com>
> Date: Tuesday, May 8, 2007 4:08 pm
> Subject: [Reader-list] No sex please, we're
> Maipuris: 3rd IF posting
> To: reader-list at sarai.net
> 
> > Manipuri films are often close imitations of the
> Bollywood flicks in
> > form, if not the content. Song, music and dance
> are one of the most
> > important ingredients in a Manipuri film. Like
> some of the Mumbai's
> > potboilers, Manipuri heroes woo their
> love-interests in the sky,
> > mountains, snow and the oceans. Hero-laden
> helicopters fly into a song
> > sequence out of nowhere, even if the hero is an
> unemployed chap in the
> > film. Shoots are done in foreign locations like
> Singapore as a trick
> > to draw audience. Actors change their clothes many
> times in a span of
> > five minutes. Even the music scores are adapted
> from the South
> > Indians. Almost all the usual 'aesthetics of
> attractions' of Mumbai
> > cinema are employed to gain eyeballs as Manipuri
> filmmakers struggle
> > to recover their production cost in a highly
> competitive market that
> > is confined to the Imphal valley.
> > 
> > So you might ask what is Manipuri about Manipuri
> films. Despite the
> > cosmetic similarities with other regional cinemas,
> Manipuri cinema has
> > begun to come on its own. This is largely a result
> of self-regulation
> > of the Manipuri film industry and in part because
> of a sort of
> > cultural regimentation imposed on the filmmakers
> by the underground
> > organisations.
> > 
> > Take for example, the song and dance sequence.
> Manipuri songs are done
> > very tastefully without any display of tits and
> bums and that 
> > makes it
> > eminently fit to be watched together in a family
> of three generations
> > without any awkwardness and embarrassments.
> Elements of sexual
> > titillation are completely absent from the
> Manipuri cinema, that
> > compared to it, a typical item number of Mallika
> Sherawat would look
> > like a soft porn stuff. No rain-soaked blouses for
> the Manipuris.
> > 
> > The Manipuris are a very conservative people. It's
> an article of faith
> > among the Manipuris that women should not drink
> wine, not reveal too
> > much cleavage, not go out late in the night, not
> laugh too loud, not
> > have food before their husbands do and so on.
> > 
> > These values get reflected in the Manipuri cinema.
> > 
> > The Imphalwood filmmakers are aware of the
> consequences if they cross
> > the line of decency and fantasy. The community has
> a powerful impact
> > on what one can do in Manipur—not only in the
> films but also in other
> > walks of life. If a filmmaker ignores the
> sensitivities of the
> > Manipuri populace, she is in for a sure trouble.
> That trouble can also
> > come from the insurgents who considers Manipuri
> cinema to be a
> > nationalistic product and a cultural ambassador.
> This notion has led
> > to some actors being prohibited from working
> together in films because
> > of their too 'inappropriate' on-screen and
> off-screen chemistry. 
> > In an
> > extreme case, a female actor was shot at her legs
> because she 
> > acted in
> > an erotic scene. Some of her male colleagues have
> paid a direr price:
> > they have been executed while others fled to
> neighbouring states. This
> > happened about a decade ago.
> > 
> > Many rounds of parleys have taken place between
> the Film Forum,
> > Manipuri, the apex body of the Imphalwood and the
> underground
> > organisations on censorship issues. While the Film
> Forum, Manipur has
> > been zealous about guarding its artistic freedom,
> the UGs have been
> > insisting on enforcing a code of conventions that
> purport to uphold
> > the dignity of the Manipuri culture and society. A
> middle ground has
> > been struck which seeks to satisfy both the
> filmmakers and the UGs.
> > 
> > This mutually agreed code is enforced by the
> preview committee of the
> > Film Forum, Manipur. From now on, a director must
> submit his print and
> > screen it before the said committee for clearance.
> The committee
> > approves the film on the basis of some criteria,
> most of which to
> > determine whether the film transgresses the line
> of decency,
> > misrepresents the culture of the Manipuris or
> imitates too profusely
> > from Bollywood. The members of this committee are
> known to show their
> > utmost displeasure at the sight of sarees, sindur,
> mangal sutra, heavy
> > make-up, exposed ribs and 'vulgar scenes'. A
> director has to 
> > comply if
> > cuts are recommended in any portion of the film.
> Only then can it be
> > submitted formally to the Central Board of Film
> Censorship at Guwahati
> > for censorship certificate.
> > 
> > Such a system does generate lots of bad feelings
> between the committee
> > and the filmmakers. It also doesn't help that most
> Manipuri filmmakers
> > have grown up on a diet of Bollywood
> movies—their filmmaking
> > approaches and techniques are uncannily similar to
> those of the
> > Mumbai's films. It appears to be quite a
> temptation for a Manipuri
> > director to make use of alien cultural symbols,
> often subconsciously,
> > like a mangal sutra, a North Indian usage which
> does not exist in the
> > Manipuri society. The preview committee acts as a
> filter to sift
> > through such kind of disconnect between the
> reality and the cinematic
> > representations.
> > 
> > Film activists mindful of the anomalies in the
> Manipuri films exhort
> > the filmmakers to look elsewhere for inspiration
> if Manipuri film has
> > to carve out its own destiny. Korean films are
> being promoted as
> > alternative films that Manipuris can emulate. The
> realist feel of the
> > Korean films with their simplicity, brevity of
> emotions and subtlety
> > are a model for a new breed of young filmmakers.
> The vice like 
> > grip of
> > Bollywood is slowly but surely loosening as Korean
> and Latin American
> > movies make their foray into Manipur, via the
> international market at
> > Moreh, a border town straddling Manipur and
> Myanmar.
> > 
> > There are merits and demerits of
> extra-institutional/official
> > censorship. On the brighter side, Manipuri films
> are becoming more
> > realistic and distinct from the homogenous
> commodity of Bollywood.
> > Liberals are however worried that it is a form of
> cultural
> 
=== message truncated ===



 
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