The world of cinema is driven by passion and those who are at the core of running it are the people who are madly in love with the medium. Sanjay Leela Bhansali, the filmmaker who is the recipient of five National Film Awards is known for grandeur and aesthetics of his film's canvas is no different. He is mad, passionate, ambitious and crazy about all things cinema. On his birthday, ETV Bharat Sitara digs into what makes him the Chekov of Indian cinema.
SRK and Madhuri Dixit in a still from Devdas Bhansali who is in his late 50s, is an intense filmmaker and his filmography seconds the fact. In one of his interviews, the Devdas helmer had confessed that he rarely goes out for movies or attends glamorous parties of Tinseltown as he is too consumed by the thought of films he wants to make.
The filmmaker had faced havoc before the release of his 2018 release Padmaavat. Unfortunately, Bhansali had to go through the trauma that no filmmaker in the history of cinema would probably have gone through. What kept him sane when the uncalled for criticism from fringe groups tried to crush the film before the world gets to see it? Love for the cinema was Bhansali's answer in a throwback interview.
Though the reception that Padmaavat received healed him, according to him he is "scared" and is skeptical about freedom of expression.
Deepika Padukone in a still from Padmaavat Bhansali's films are set in ostentatious, larger than life surroundings and according to popular view, every frame in Bhansali's film is no less of a beautiful painting. For the filmmaker, God is in the details and each frame is sacrosanct.
READ |Bhansali's Gangubai Kathiawadi starring Alia Bhatt goes on floors
To be part of a Bhansali directorial is a dream come true for any actor while for his leading ladies, the opportunity is equivalent to on-screen rebirth. Whether it is debutante Sonam Kapoor in Saawariya, Aishwarya Rai in Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam and Devdas or Deepika Padukone in Goliyon Ki Raasleela Ram-Leela, Bajirao Mastani and Padmaavat. Bhansali certainly has a Midas touch when it comes to capturing the beauty of his leading ladies on celluloid.
Leading ladies of Bhansali Accused of making cinema that is far fetched from reality, Sanjay in his defence had once said that every filmmaker creates his own cinematic reality which is the amalgamation of various art forms.
"When I go to a shooting floor, I get fascinated. It's my absolute temple, my place of worship," Bhansali once said. The seeds of this madness were sown at the age of four when he accompanied his father to a shooting spot where a cabaret was being shot, astonished by the energy on the set, Bhansali then had an instinct that "this is his world."
In his career spread over more than two decades, Bhansali has comparatively made fewer movies. The ace storyteller takes enough time before delving into production. That is what exactly happening with his upcoming film Gangubai Kathiawadi which will hit the screens after more than two years of Padmaavat release.
Alia Bhatt's maiden collaboration with SLB It's not cinema that consumes all of Bhansali's creative energy. The Padma Shri awardee also has a deep understanding of music. Apart from directing, Bhansali has also given music for movies such as Padmaavat, Bajirao Mastani and will be composing tracks for his upcoming flick Gangubai Kathiawadi. Bhansali is all game for the biggest challenge of his career as he will be helming his first full fledged musical, Baiju Bawra.
READ |Sanjay Leela Bhansali: Baiju Bawra my biggest challenge as composer
Another allegation leveled against the Black helmer is that he contracts his frames to the minutest detail not allowing room for spontaneity. But, Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh, the now-married couple whose love story took off on the sets of Goliyon Ki Raasleela Ram-Leela, had said that while making the film they were pushed against the wall umpteen number of times.
Bhansali with his frequent collaborators, DeepVeer His cinematic creations are varied by subject but united by distinctive characteristics – a sense of beauty and larger than life projection. The elements that define Bhansali's cinema are the result of its absence from his formative years.
The 56-year-old filmmaker had once said that as a child also his mind was excessively occupied in "finding beauty in the lack of beauty" in his life.
For Bhansali, making a movie is "constantly writing with the camera on the set." The filmmaker who is a genre in himself feels that the Hindi film industry doesn't produce cinema that can stand the competition of the make-believe world created by legends like Kamal Amrohi, K Asif, Raj Kapoor, V Shantaram and many more.
While cinemagoers are awaiting the release of his upcoming film Gangubai Kathiawadi with powerhouse talent Alia Bhatt, we wish the filmmaker more energy and strength in times to come to pursue love his life – CINEMA.
