Sunny Leone-starrer Jism 2’s box-office success reveals society’s duplicity?

You like it, yet you won’t accept. You will do it, yet you won’t confess. We call this double standard or hypocrisy! The best and the recent example of this can be the latest Bollywood release 'Jism 2'. 

Even before the movie could have gone on the floor for shooting, its makers Mahesh Bhatt, Pooja Bhatt, and of course the leading lady- Indo Canadian porn star Sunny Leone, were criticised to the core. While the makers of the movie were criticized for introducing a hard core porn star in commercial cinema...Leon was ridiculed and called unabashed, disrespectful and even shameless.

(pic courtesy: santabanta.com)

The movie’s first look – a poster of a lady covered only in a wet, thin translucent white sheet, became a controversy. Political parties demanded the posters to be pulled down. Reason, it was too explicit and against Indian culture and societal norms. (However, some politician didn't think on the same lines before watching porn during a Parliamentary session!)

The Censor Board of Film Certification (CBFC) refused to certify the film (Jism 2), till the racy scenes in question were edited. (As if this is the first movie ever with intimate scenes for Indian audiences.)

The movie has been in trouble ever since it was spoken about. And today, when Jism 2 is a-week old at the box-office, its makers have all the reasons to smile. The movie, which lacks a good screenplay and is slow paced, is already a hit at the box-office. Jism 2, which was alleged for ‘illegally promoting a porn star’, has brought laurels to Sunny Leon! The movie, which was considered to be unfit for the ‘Indian society’ has garnered nearly Rs 28 crore in just 7 days! Interestingly, a movie with such intense scenes is not a new thing for Indian cine lovers.

Last year too, we had The Dirty Picture, which gave Vidya Balan a new avataar- that of being sensuous and sexy. As a matter of fact, way back in 1993, director Ketan Mehta’s movie Maya Memsaab had made headlines for explicit love making scene between Deepa Sahi and Shah Rukh Khan. While Maya Memsaab marked a new era of film making in Indian cinema, The Dirty Picture fetched Vidya Balan a National Award. And the irony, The Dirty Picture had to face many hurdles before it could be aired on television’s prime time slot.

Definitely, Balan is a much high profile actor than Leone, and me comparing the two might be an objectionable deed for many. However, with no intention of being discourteous to either of the two ladies, what I would like to highlight in either case is that both the movies created brouhaha. Yet, both the movies turned out to be box-office hits!

This makes me wonder, if we are willing to step out of our homes to theaters to experience this kind of cinema, then who is creating the hullabaloo in the name of society? Movies are just a small aspect. Look beyond entertainment industry, be it politics, corporate, education or even general issues, there is always one person with money and/or man power representing the people of India. But is he really our envoy?

Are we uncomfortable making our own norms and standing for the same? Or are we scared of expressing ourselves against the societal norms? May be yes! May be it’s the fear of standing against power that we refuse to come out of our shells. But which way is this attitude leading us to?