Having made his debut in 1999 with Pyaar Mein Kabhi Kabhi,13 years in the industry sees Sanjay Suri recognised as a seasoned actor,especially in the art film segment. Today, he prefers to play a greater role inproduction houses rather than in front of a camera. This, he believes gives himmore scope to publicise the ‘art-film’ and ‘off-beat’ segment of cinema, whichhe feels does not get its due. “I find that the major issue is that a largesection of film-goers sometimes draw unnecessary comparisons across genres.Equating Ra One with My Brother Nikhil does not make sense, as they send outdifferent messages and cater to a different audience altogether.”
Suri played the protagonist in ‘My Brother... Nikhil’ wherehis role as a homosexual AIDS victim won him critical acclaim. However, whilethe movie received unanimous praise among Indian film critics, it failed atbeing a box office hit across India.
As any business revolves around its customers, film toowould be dependent on its faithful following. Would this mean that art filmshave no market in the present day climate? Suri feels otherwise. But also feelsthat finances play a big role. “Cinema is also about the entire experience.People want to be out with friends, and at a movie. Art films seldom see largegroups going together. That would mean that some people would have to resort togoing out once to watch a movie for the entire experience, and then a secondtime to watch a film that could well be streets ahead in terms of quality.People cannot always afford to spend that kind of cash. To the average person,Rs 300 is a large sum to spend on just a movie ticket.”
When it comes down to publicising off-beat cinema, Surifeels that the government is who people should turn to for aid. “Asking thegovernment for help is paramount. I believe that without this, there cannot bemuch development of art cinema. At the end on the day, the word ‘industry’rings true in the term film industry, because when all is said and done, itcomes to down to the analysis of profit. Therefore private concerns will not beas keen as they should be with regard to highlighting this genre of film,” hesays.
Suri then goes on to explain that this kind of undertakingis possible, and has happened before. Signing off, he says, “A perfect exampleof how the government can help is the case of a cinema called Nandan inKolkata. The government took it over, and today, it functions as a space whereart cinema is showcased. Goa, along with the rest of the country could followin the same vein, and benefit from this model. I would wager that audienceswould be happy if Kala Academy expanded a little and Goa had such an auditoriumfor such films.”
