Real To Reel

After decades of churning out larger-than-life, masala movies, Bollywood is discovering the films that connect with audiences. Among these films are biopics, movies based on unsung heroes or dramatic incidents that have the power to hold the attention of a captive audience for a couple of hours.

This is evident from some of the releases in 2018, like Hichki, Raid, Raazi and last week's release Parmanu: The Story Of Pohkran, which have not only been appreciated by the critics and the audience but also rang in some good numbers at the box office.

And this is just the beginning. In the next few months, we have films like Sanju, Soorma, GOLD, The Accidental Prime Minister and Manikarnika – Queen Of Jhansi all inspired by real life. We spoke to noted writers from the Hindi film industry and asked them about their process of taking something that happened, unknown real-life incidents, and making them into full-fledged films.

Rumi Jaffry, Writer

It is a good thing that these movies are doing well. Movies based on real-life incidents and people have done well, for example Airlift. Movies like these have been made in the past as well, but yes the business has not been as spectacular as we see now. The audience today is much more educated. Films based on real-life people and incidents, inspiring stories that are well made and well-presented are being appreciated and accepted now more, compared to earlier. When writing a script based on reality, you have to keep in mind that you are writing for cinema. You may have to include some fictional elements.

For example, when Airlift released, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was upset and officially released a statement that the film showed them in a bad light. But, the writers said that they had made changes to the story to make the movie and so that all the acts of bravery are done by the hero.

Saiwyn, Writer

The first challenge is, of course, to keep the essence of the person or the incident primary. I think that is most important because we have to fictionalise a lot of elements, but that fictionalisation should not seem like it is unreal. People should not be confused or be unable to figure out whether or not something happened. The challenge is to maintain the right balance between what you are fictionalising and what is real. Detailed research is the second most important thing, I guess.

There are two things that are happening. One, everyone in the business wants to adapt real life stories on screen because they seem to be working more than fiction stories. Second, the industry brackets you immediately. I am working on a couple of fiction scripts along with a couple of real-life stories. So, it is not a conscious decision. As a writer, or as an artiste, I want to explore all genres. What happens to me is, when I listen to an incredible real-life story or a person's life story, I automatically see that it is film worthy, not in every case but in a few cases, especially in the films I am working on.

Rajkumar Gupta, Writer

When you are dealing with things in real life or with a real-life personality, the big challenge is to maintain one's sensitivity. When I was doing Raid and No One Killed Jessica, the biggest challenge was to portray the incidents and represent the personalities and do justice to them.

As a writer, you have to remember that you are making a film and not a documentary. So, the challenge is also where to draw the line and strike a balance between the real incident and the fictional element that one wants to produce.

The story should touch your soul in some way. It needs to touch you with its emotionality, which inspires you to do something about that incident or that personality.

Siddharth Malhotra, Writer

In my case, Brad Cohen had that syndrome. He himself gave me the one line that 'everybody has to respond positively to your disability.' That became the core thought of Naina Mathur, that 'I have Tourette syndrome but you need to figure out your Tourettes.' I had to keep that in mind and understand who Brad is as a human being, because that journey was very different from my journey of Naina Mathur. The goal of the intent of the character and the motivation of the character is your question.

The dos and don'ts come with the various drafts that you write. Your first draft is never going to be your final draft. As a writer, you need to know what you are going to say or not.

Vipul Rawal, Writer

Apart from thorough research, the writer should also ensure that he doesn't fall for the so-called commercial trap and mess up the story by adding unwanted 'masala'. Bhaag Milkha Bhaag and Paan Singh Tomar are excellent examples of real stories told well on reel.

Since I have a background in the Armed Forces, and I was in the Indian Navy before I became a writer, I have plenty of stories about the exploits of our defence forces and intelligence services which I intend to make into films someday.

Gazal Dhaliwal, Writer

In my opinion, a big challenge while adapting a real character's story is to be able to tell their life's vast journey efficiently in a 120-minute film. It is key to sift through the numerous situations/incidents in the person's life and identify a unique thread or series of events which would bind the story together.

At the end of the day, most people in India come to theatres to be entertained. So, often, filmmakers can get tempted to unreasonably play with reality for dramatic purposes. The challenge is to maintain the integrity of the reality (story/character) and yet create a memorable, effective film. One of the best examples of adaptations in recent times is Talvar. The film presented realities from two different perspectives while making a subtle statement of its own. For me, Talvar is a benchmark.