UP-B and Bollywood

UP-B stands for Uttar Pradesh – Bihar. The badlands. Too often associated with lawlessness and corruption. For many outsiders, looking at these states with unjustified superiority, UP-B symbolizes a state of mind that has no use for the discreet veneer of democracy that hides the ugliness of corruption in their own states.

No wonder Bollywood has ignored, if not completely avoided, these states as settings of its stories. In the bygone era, UP-B was always the preferred setting for movies with rural background and stories – be it Ganga Jamuna or Do Beegha Zameen. Both these films belong to the golden age of hindi cinema – a time when UP-B was home of some of the most brilliant minds in the country.

Despite the neglect caused by Bollywood and the rest of the country, some really outstanding movies were made about or in these regions. Well aware of my biases, I always arrange these lists, if possible, chronologically.

1. Nadiya Ke Paar

My dad used to tell me the story about when this movie was released. Villagers from surrounding as well as far-off villages use to come in their carts and camp outside Maya cinema hall for a week or even ten days out. Just to queue up outside the ticket window and somehow manage to get them. Take that, Potterfans. This movie defines simplicity. Version 2.0 became the most successful hindi movie ever.

2. Bandit Queen

Brutal. The story, the lines, the lass, the lads, the land. For a pampered sixteen year old like me, it was more hard-hitting than today’s fuel prices. Although, a lot of questions were raised about the intentions of Shekhar Kapur, especially by Arundhati Roy, it doesn’t chip away the facts.

3. Shool

Another uncompromising story set in a small Bihar town. If Bihar is a byword for lawlessness, this total disregard for law and its enforcers is represented at its worst in a small town cowering under the heel of the local politician. Into this den of iniquity walks the upright, uptight, short-tempered Inspector Samar Pratap Singh (Manoj Bajpai in a towering performance where rage and sensitivity are finely balanced). The confrontation between the law upholder and the maniacal law-breaker unfolds like a series of well-placed time bombs. The script was tight, eminently plausible, except for the climax. If E. Nivas had opted for a muted ending, Shool would be in a class of its own - at the top.

4. Gangajal

Based on the infamous Bhagalpur blinding cases, Gangajal confronts us with a moral dilemma. What should you, as a police officer, do when you are thwarted at every step by a) politicians, b) gundas c) social workers or d) all of the above, while performing your duty? Should you bow your head, hunch your shoulders and accept the reality? Or you turn into vigilantes and render your own justice? Shehenshah style. Or Gangajal style.

5. Bunty Aur Babli

Lucknow, Kanpur, Agra, Bareilly, Bulandshahr, Varanasi. This movie is like a kaleidoscope of Uttar Pradesh. Romance, comedy, action se bharpoor. And of course, the greatest item number ever made.

6. Sehar

Out of complete boredom, I went to watch this movie without having a clue about the story. There was a criminal who was maintained by politicians of UP. His name was Shri Prakash Shukla. The film is based on how some dedicated policemen gave their lives away in trying to crackdown this guy. Having grown up in UP at the time when Shri Prakash shukla stole regional headlines, I was able to relate to the film totally. This is a tribute to those film makers who subtract flamboyancy from the narrative of the film based on real life incidents. All this was secondary. This movie had me at the first line: “Ye kahaani shuru hoti hai Gorakhpur se…”  

7. Apaharan

No one in Bollywood knows Bihar better than Prakash Jha. He seems to have intimate knowledge and the despairing rage of a commentator who can see the terrible history of his state with surprising objectivity. After the Gangajal revolution, he now examines the prevalence of and the reasons and justification for another peculiarly Bihari industry: kidnapping for ransom. There are no easy answers. It is perhaps enough to pose the questions.

8. Main, Meri Patni Aur Woh

Take a look at Indian society. Look closely at our hang-ups with marriage : caste, creed, gender, height, color, weight, wealth etc. Into this prejudicial society introduce a short, plain, unassuming man, and his tall, beautiful, vivacious wife. And let the fireworks begin. Although every member of the cast was brilliant, it was Rajpal Yadav who takes the cake. It was stunning to see him play the part of Lucknow University librarian to perfection. The language, the lines, the mannerisms, the articulation, and most importantly, the Lakhnawi tehzeeb and sharaafat – to exact proportions.

9. Omkara

Five years since the release, this movie still retains the same freshness. That’s Vishal Bhardwaj for you. Or, may be, William Shakespeare. Othello cannot have a different adaptation – from an Venetian general to a western UP baahubali. Cast is fantastic. Devgn is arresting. Saif undoubtedly steals the show. Dobrial was the film’s finding. Even Bipasha makes it work (yeah, wonders never cease).

10. Ishqiya

Again, Gorakhpur. But this story could have taken place anywhere. Then again, what better place to portray lawlessness than eastern UP? Like Popeye's simplistic philosophy, "I yam what I yam", Ishqiya tells it like it is - no judging. The brilliance of this movie lies in its crackling dialogs which throw up so many little gems it’s hard to pick just one, and the superlative performances by its cast. It is a delight to see Naseeuddin Shah in a meaty role, awe-inspiring to watch Vidya Balan con two cons and fun to see a very un-Circiut Arshad Warsi.

11. Ishaqzaade

This is one of those movies which portray a serious issue with such an uncanny ease it seems innocent. Not on the same level as Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron or Peepli [Live], this movie packs a punch with its story (tighter than Jeetendra’s pants), speed (faster than his jumps) and Parineeti Chopra. The hero, according to my wife, was lost somewhere behind his beard.

There are many more movies – Hazaaron Khwaishen Aisi, Mrityudand, for example, worth mentioning here, but don’t get the space (yeah, like it’s coveted *eye roll*) because I haven’t had the honor to watch them.

UP-B is such a beautiful place, looking out from your train window, you can easily see that any field can host a DDLJ scene, the green pastures can give an equal fight to the Scottish countryside, and don’t get me started on the rivers and lakes. But they are still neglected because of many reasons – poor infrastructure, corruption, crime to name a few.

But every now and then a movie comes which tells a story about these parts. And whenever it does, whatever the story, I smile.