REEL Movie Awards Juror Sudhir Mishra Says Films Based On Middle Class Sentiments Are Making A Comeback

Sudhir Mishra, a juror of the REEL Movie Awards recently said that many Bollywood films are representing middle class sentiments and we are going back to Basu Chatterjee and Hrishikesh Mukherjee's kind of cinema.

The filmmaker said that movies such as Piya Ka Ghar (1972), Rajnigandha (1974) and Chupke Chupke (1975) were iconic and realistic portrayal of Indian middle class. This year too, many new films have also tried to capture the essence of small town, middle class life. “I am glad that this kind of cinema is now finding a place again. I think it is a kind of cycle and it has come back. There are also many directors who come from small towns to Bollywood, for example, someone like Raju (Rajkumar Hirani), who has been a small town boy and therefore understands middle-class sentiments and small town environment," said the veteran filmmaker. All the films nominated in the best film category at REEL Movie Awards are set in small towns.

Talking about the filmmakers nominated for REEL Movie Awards, Mishra said,"Alankrita (Srivastava) has found a place and come into her own and it is a good thing. Amit Masurkar I thought was quite a talent when I saw his Sulemani Keeda. I think they are stars and we will hear about them in future."

The best filmmaker category has three other nominees apart from Srivastava and Masurkar. Konkona Sen Sharma has been nominated for A Death in the Gunj, Shubhashish Bhutiani for Mukti Bhawan and RS Prasanna for Shubh Mangal Saavdhan.

Sudhir Mishra said that he is happy to see REEL Movie Awards celebrate the spirit of Independent cinema, noting, “Independent films are made with a free spirit, despite certain constraints. Free spirit is possible when you are not trying to please everyone. You know it is kind of the rule, the lesser the budget, the freer you are." Mishra added that it was hard to pick the winners because all the nominees were great.

Talking about Tumhari Sulu and Lipstick Under My Burkha, Mishra said that it is great to see the number of films made on women have increased over the years but he added that it is not a new phenomenon. The filmmaker said that the trend of making women-centric cinema had emerged over the years starting from Waheeda Rehman-starrer Guide (1965).The filmmaker also said that his films like Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi and Chameli were also based on strong female characters.