Posts tagged voyeurism

A look at marketing strategies of small films

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2 years ago
by Fenil Seta in

By Nikhil Ramsubramaniam, March 14, 2011 – 19:09 IST

The year 2010-11 could be well termed as a Renaissance year for the Hindi film industry. While big budget films such as Raavan, Kites, Action Replayy, Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey and Guzaarish failed to set the Box Office on fire, smaller films such as Udaan, Peepli [LIVE], Tere Bin Laden, LSD, Phas Gaye Re Obama & Dhobi Ghat etc. with relatively lesser known stars and debutant directors (in most cases) won both critical acclaim and commercial success.

Most of these films were made at a limited budget and focussed more on their content rather than big stars and exotic locations. An interesting part is the fact that even the marketing strategy used to promote these films was quite different and subtle targeting a niche audience.

As a unique case study we take a look at 3 such off-beat films namely Dhobi Ghat, Love, Sex Aur Dhokha (LSD) and Udaan to try and understand how an innovative marketing strategy helped in the film finding its target audience.

Dhobi Ghat

Any Aamir Khan Productions’ film always generates tremendous hype and curiosity given the actor’s penchant for quality cinema. If needed, Aamir could have cashed in on this very hype by promoting wifey’s directorial debut Dhobi Ghat as a film for all. However, Aamir didn’t want his loyal audience to feel cheated and adopted a marketing strategy which not many would adopt.

Perhaps, the most poignant insight came from an industry insider who notes that the More >

Shahid stands tall on the cover of Man’s World

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2 years ago
by Fenil Seta in

By Bollywood Hungama News Network, May 22, 2010 – 14:50 IST

You knew him as the romantic teenager in Ishq Vishk, then he surprised you by playing a devoted husband in Vivah, while you were still there, he took you by surprise as the introvert who is magically transformed by over talkative girl in Jab We Met, but what took the cake was the lean mean fighting machine act in Kaminey. Shahid Kapoor, who is a standing example of the phrase ‘chip of the old block’.

It’s the genes that did it, but we wouldn’t like to take the credit away from him as he accepts his failures and stands humble about his hits in the May issue of Man’s World. Shahid poses in an all black suit, with a smile that reflects the pitfalls, success and heartbreaks and the never ending media voyeurism only to come out self assured, confident and undeterred. Get a hold of this copy to read the bare all interview by the Kapoor boy on all things life, movies and love.

Fenil’s Bollywood Talk # 92

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3 years ago
by Fenil Seta in

THREE INTERESTING FILMS THIS WEEKEND! Tomorrow, three small-budget but very interesting films are all set to hit the screens. My take:

LOVE SEX AUR DHOKHA: The film has a title which more than half of the population would hesitate mentioning! Thankfully, to make things easier, the makers of the film has emphasized more on the abbreviation of the title-LSD! India’s first digital film, LSD is based on a voyeurism and from the promos it seems to be a truly path-breaking film. The film has no famous actor at all and yet the film has scored because of its title, theme and promos. Also it is directed by Dibakar Banerjee who has impressed many by his last 2 films-Khosla Ka Ghosla and ‘Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye!’. However, LSD is a completely new territory and there are high chances that the makers might not come with a film that meets the expectations. Let’s hope for the best!

SHAAPIT: Vikram Bhatt is back after the successful 1920 with another horror flick, Shaapit. It marks the acting debut of Aditya Narayan and also television actress Shweta Agarwal. Promotion could have been better but still the film has made many curious. Also it has Aditya who has a considerable fan following. Like for every other film, Shaapit needs to be well-made to get box office success. 1920 also had newcomers and it clicked wonderfully with the audience and was a hit too. And the same is expected from Shaapit too. It would definitely get the best opening out of the three!

LAHORE: More >

Movie Review: LOVE SEX AUR DHOKHA by TARAN ADARSH

1
3 years ago
by Fenil Seta in

By Taran Adarsh, March 15, 2010 – 11:19 IST

Be forewarned…

  • LOVE SEX AUR DHOKHA is not the archetypal/mundane/formulaic stuff that one has grown watching.
  • LOVE SEX AUR DHOKHA is not for the faint-hearted.
  • LOVE SEX AUR DHOKHA is not for the orthodox/conformists/moral watchdogs of society.

First things first! It’s not another version of Steven Soderbergh’s SEX, LIES, & VIDEOTAPE [1989], as widely rumoured. Now let me hit the nail on the head. Don’t expect the expected from Dibakar Banerjee. LOVE SEX AUR DHOKHA, helmed by the director of KHOSLA KA GHOSLA and OYE LUCKY! LUCKY OYE!, is a complete departure from what we have witnessed so far. It talks of voyeurism [it has been divided into three stories, each focussing on different plots pertaining to voyeurism]. It is brave. It is scandalous. Most importantly, it is path-breaking. You will either love it or loathe it.

BY BOLLYWOOD HUNGAMA.COM

LOVE SEX AUR DHOKHA is not an easy film to comprehend either. The constant shaking of camera [it's a digital film with a hidden camera playing a character by itself] may bother you initially, since this is the first time that a storyteller has used this technique in Bollywood to narrate three different stories in one film. But the material is so compelling [screenplay: Dibakar Banerjee and Kanu Behl] and the stories so captivating that you absorb this storytelling technique within a few minutes of its commencement.

Dibakar makes an attempt to tell you that there’s More >

LSD is a must watch for families!-Dibakar Banerjee

0
3 years ago
by Fenil Seta in

MY TAKE: Dibakar Banerjee

His film might have a bold theme but director Dibakar Banerjee says everyone should watch it

SARRAH KHILAWALA (BOMBAY TIMES; March 13, 2010)

It would be a crime to have a subject as bold as ALT Entertainment’s Love Sex Aur Dhokha and not to ask director Dibakar Banerjee about the controversies surrounding it. Talking about the theme of voyeurism which is the crux of his film, he says, “I made a film I believe in without the intention of creating a controversy, the controversy is an after effect.” He smirks on being questioned about an unusual title like LSD and wittily replies, “My mum was a little hesitant while pronouncing the title at a stretch.”

The title track of LSD is ruling charts all over and Dibakar is all smiles about it, “It’s a great feeling when small films that need all the publicity acquire the same on their merit, thanks to the catchy music of the film. This is the first lip-sync song I have ever used in any of my films and has an extremely intricate relationship with the movie.” Looks like everyone wants a little bit of LSD these days!

This film has been divided into three stories, each focussing on different plots pertaining to voyeurism. Hence, Dibakar feels that there was a need for fresh faces in order to portray the realism. With this film, the audience can look forward to a new approach to filmmaking as this film has been shot in a digital format where various kinds of cameras have More >

Ekta Kapoor and Dibakar Banerjee differ over Love Sex Aur Dhokha

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3 years ago
by Fenil Seta in

By Subhash K. Jha, December 23, 2009 – 14:14 IST

Ekta Kapoor won’t show her new film Love Sex Aur Dhokha directed by Dibakar Banerjee to her parents. Given her initial reaction she wouldn’t show it to anyone. But then better sense prevailed after she saw and absorbed Banerjee’s gritty and real feature film on digital drama.

Apparently, Ekta simply freaked out at the trial, screaming and wondering aloud what this director had made, for her Dibakar Banerjee’s first film for Ekta Kapoor’s Balaji Films is also Ekta’s first foray into experimental cinema.

And when she saw the finished product, Ekta simply freaked out. According to onlookers Ekta’s reaction to Banerjee’s digitally-shot film on the absence of privacy and the prevalence of voyeurism in today’s time was one of horror and utter disbelief.

Dibakar Banerjee doesn’t deny his producer was shocked. “When Ekta saw the film she wasn’t so much shocked by the content on voyeurism and free-for-all invasion of privacy as the treatment and format. I’ve shot the film on a digital format with a hand-held camera. So Ekta’s first question was, ‘Why is the camera shaking so much?’ Her second question was, ‘Who is going to watch this film?’ Frankly I had answers for both the questions. But Ekta’s initial reaction of shock remains. She doesn’t really believe that such an unusual and shocking film is viable. But she sees me as this nice sweet seemingly harmless Bengali guy who can’t deliberately do anything wrong. She’s indulging me. More >

LSD is my ground ZERO!-Dibakar Banerjee

0
3 years ago
by Fenil Seta in
Dibakar Banerjee gets voyeuristic in his next film

PRIYA SUGATHAN Times News Network (BOMBAY TIMES; December 17, 2009)

With the super success of Khosla Ka Ghosla and Oye Lucky, Lucky Oye, Dibakar Banerjee has come to be the new-age Hrishikesh Mukherjee and Basu Chaterjee rolled in one. While his third film Love Sex Aur Dhoka (LSD) continues to remain urban-centric and small-budget, it is going to be a radically different experience than its predecessors. “The word ‘sex’ adds to the allure of the film. Why do we make so much out of this three-letter-word? When it’s accepted that it’s as basic a need as eating food, everyone indulges in it, and yet there’s a taboo to it. It also forms a major part of voyeurism, which is the premise of the film. We have turned voyeuristic in recent times. We want to know what’s happening behind closed doors, or catch a celeb with his pants down. It’s a streak that’s spilling over in our relationships, in our entertainment and the news. Even our ideas on love or sex are not our own, but borrowed from what’s seen on screen,” says Dibakar as he explains the subject of his film. LSD will be India’s first digital film. “The Hindi filmgoer is going to be stunned. The film could only be shot on a digital format. In this age of online videos, Youtube, MMS, it’s time we explored these mediums to tell our stories. The format has its own grammar. I had to unlearn all my filmi gyan. It was my ground zero. I shot the film using cameras that were More >

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