Before you start reading this post I must declare that this post is not a critique of DevD. Its my thoughts about its success.
I watched Dev D quite late compared to most people here at PFC. So by the time I walked inside the theater, the film was already declared a hit, after a very hard battle over the weekend. It was also a very interesting weekend, as news from Box Offices around the country kept coming the status kept flip-flopping between Flop & Hit. I felt it was the detractors who also had a vested interest in DevD's failure. Finally Dev D emerged victorious after a week.
I was 20 minutes late(Thanks to Kingfisher @ Ambala Dhaba). Completely missed the childhood part. It took us a good 10-15 minutes to get used to what we were watching. But throughout the film, I kept thinking "How the hell is this movie a Hit in India?" I was still heartbroken from the failure of LUCK BY CHANCE. I kept thinking how does one connect to the Indian Audience?
Its almost like how after elections all the Exit Poll guys sit around NDTV & wonder "what the fuck just happened in Karnataka". If a simple linear film like Luck By Chance which is flawless in its execution could not connect with the junta, how can this trippy-noir-new-wavy film with a french soul connect with India?
Initially I was jumping with joy. That this film signals the maturity of Indian audience & blah blah blah... But as I kept thinking more about these two films, my optimism in the audience disappeared. There were a few things in Dev D that made the film a hit -
1) Music - Amit Trivedi is the biggest star of the film. Esp Emotional Atyachar connected with the youth in a big way.
2) Sex - There was a refreshing amount of sex in the film. Characters talked about sex all the time. This probably helped with people who are not exposed to world cinema. The infamous MMS Scandal also must have fueled a lot of curiosity.
3) Style - The look of the film was Fantastic. And it was a combo of Editing , Photography & Production Design. (I love how we don't see the G of GRAND Hotel).
I feel if any of these elements were missing from the film the chances of the film working at the box office would have been very low.
Just the music & Anurag's energetic direction without all that sex talk.
All that great music & Sex but not that cool looking film.
All that style & great music but without the sex talk.
And compared to Dev D Luck By Chance might seem grand but it had so much subtlety which is hard to notice because of its mega canvass. So as much as I would like to rejoice at the success of Dev D as, for now I would look at things in a pragmatic way.
