No one’s ready to tolerate in today’s society: Prakash

Prakash Jha, who is known to make socio-political movies, talks about the current society and people

Filmmaker Prakash Jha says nobody in presentday society is ready to tolerate anything against their beliefs. “We talk about tolerance all the time, (but) no one is ready to tolerate today — not in the house, society or country. We are experiencing a different kind of society at this time,” Jha said. “I was talking to a Supreme Court judge recently, and we spoke about how most of the violence that the world experiences today, happens either because of food or sex. We are like animals fighting over food and sex. The only difference is that the animals don’t overeat and overindulge, but we as humans are always overeating and overindulging,” he added. Jha, who has made sociopolitical films like Damul (1985), Mrityudand(1997), Gangaajal (2003) and Raajneeti (2010), doesn’t feel that cinema can bring social change. “But I see that it’s a powerful medium to keep the issues under discussion. Recently, we released a film called Lipstick Under My Burkha. My assistant came to me with the script; I was stunned. I saw these four women, who were experiencing the oppression of life. Male gazing in our society is thoroughly permitted — you can look under the skirt, have a halfnaked woman going around. From a male point of view, everything is permitted. But, here (in Lipstick...), a woman wanted to stalk. It looked completely different, and I thought we have to make this film,” he added. Talking about the different issues he has witnessed in Indian society over the last few decades, Jha said, “Society is in constant movement. Things keep happening and changing in the society. This changes the whole behaviour of the society... In between 2000-2010, the whole world went through a huge change. Whatever we have consumed during that time, we won’t be able to produce it in the next 40 years. Now we are dealing with a recession. There is a loss of faith just because the market is depressed. These are the things that we observe and make stories out of it,” he added.

PHOTO:YOGEN SHAH Prakash Jha has made films like Damul (1985), Mrityudand(1997), Gangaajal (2003) and Raajneeti (2010)