The London Indian film festival opened on Wednesday with Gangs of Wasseypur, a two-part epic about criminal dynasties who control a mining town in the lawless state of Jharkand. With its raw potrayal of a reality that never appears in the glossy utopia of Bollywood, it heralds a movement towards exposing the hypocrisies of Indian society about sex, drugs, development and injustice. And it’s a movement that is not going unnoticed: Gangs was the first mainstream Indian film to compete in the director’s fortnight at Cannes last month.
Also showing at the London festival is Gandu (“Arsehole”), a thrash-metal rap musical about a young dopehead and his lust for fame and sex that, despite being banned in India, has become one of the country’s most talked about films, with its explicit opium smoking, foul language and masturbation. It’s fringe cinema, but follows mainstream hits such as last year’sThe Dirty Picture – the fruity tale of a south Indian movie siren – the success of which indicates a greater honesty and confidence in discussing sexuality. Cannes also gave a warm reception to Miss Lovely, a story set in the pulpy soft-porn industry of 80s Bombay.
This new cinema is both a product of and a reaction to India’s development since it opened its economy to the rest of the world. With dark-skinned heroes swearing liberally in Bhojpuri, a regional vernacular, and no mainstream stars, Gangs of Wasseypur is an exceptional film for a mainstream production company, enabled by the new fluidity of Indian society. Produced by Viacom, headed by Vikram Malhotra, a former airline executive, it is directed by Anurag Kashyap.
The London Indian film festival runs until 3 July at venues across London
