State lad youngest Indian to conquer Mt Everest
IMPHAL, May 18: Even though it was nearly five-decades back when New Zealander Edmund Hillary and his Nepali companion Tenzing Norgay scaled Mount Everest, the world's highest peak, on May 29, 1953, Nameirakpam Chingkheinganba became the youngest Indian .....
CM for decorum in Palace compound
IMPHAL, May 18: Strongly emphasising on protection, maintenance and renovation of historical monuments and sites to uphold Manipur's glorious past, chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh has called upon private land owners in Palace Compound to relinquish land .....
Burmese Language Studies programme
A resource persons speaks during the Burmese Language Studies programme organised by Meetei Council Moreh at the border town on May 18. The programme was conducted under the sponsorship of Bhuban Gems, whose propreitor Naorem Nabachandra is also the presi.....
Anti-AFSPA rally in Ukl
Ukhrul, May 18: The District social organizations and NGOs of Ukhrul today jointly organized a silent protest rally demanding repeal of AFSPA (Armed forces special powers) act 1958 from the region. Addressing the participants, president of Tangkhul you.....
Govt okays MoU with UPPK
IMPHAL, May 18: The State Cabinet has given its approval for the State Government to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with UPPK which has given up arms and returned to the mainstream. In this regard, Ministry of Home Affairs, North East in-char.....
BJP alleges project anomalies, demands CBI probe
IMPHAL, May 18: Referring to comment in a local daily about the Chief Minister O Ibobi Singh charging some of his ministerial colleagues of depleting the State exchequer crores of rupees, the BJP Ma-nipur Pradesh today demanded a CBI inquiry on the matter.....
Leakages waste 60 Kls
IMPHAL, May 18: Around 60 Kls of SK Oil are wasted due to leakages every month out of 2080 Kls allocated to Manipur by the Government of India for a month. With the State Government accepting that 60 Kls of SK Oil are wasted every month due to leakages.....
Shija's Cleft Project goes on
IMPHAL, May 18: With the objective of faciliting formal education of all children with deformed lips and palates, Smile Train Shija SSA Cleft Project is going on in Shija Hospital as a joint project of the hospital and Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan. After 10 c.....
TNAL protests
IMPHAL, May 18: The Tang-khul Naga Aze Longphang (Southern Tangkhul Naga Union) strongly denounced the Cabinet decision which prohibited entry of both Sailent and Saijang villagers to the ‘disputed site.’ An emergency general bo-dy meeting of TNAL .....
UGs clash
IMPHAL, May 18: A suspected NSCN (IM) cadre died in a gunfight with ZUF rebels at Lunghshai Chiru, located at the border of Bishnupur and Chu-rachandpur districts at around 2 pm today. The gunbattle broke out at the bank of Thongjaorok riv-er under Upp.....
NPF, ATSUM flay vacate order
IMPHAL, May 18: An order from the state government was issued today (Saturday) asking the residents of Naga River Colony in Imphal to vacate by May 19 (Sunday). The government of Manipur is planning to construct a five-star hotel in the area. Registeri.....
Gym inaugurated
IMPHAL, May 18: Khurai AC MLA Dr Ng Bijoy inaugurated AL-UMMAH gym at Khabeisoi today. The MLA was the chief guest of the function while Mohtamin Principal MV Abdul Kareem Dasmi was the president. Animal Gym founder and Real Heroes 2012 awardee RK Vish.....
Dr NT Kom felicitated
IMPHAL, May 18: Civil Services Examination 2012 successful candidate Dr Neilenthang Telien Kom was feted in a reception function organised in his honour at Lower Kom Keirap Baptist Church today. Taking part at the function, IFCD Minister Ngamthang Haokip .....
Mayek Chatpa Numit
IMPHAL, May 18: Marking the 7th anniversary of State Government’s declaration to replace Bengali script with Meetei Mayek in the school syllabus of Manipuri subject, Meetei Erol Eyek Loinasillon Apunba Lup (MEELAL) today observed Mayek Chatpa Numit at .....
High tension electric wire falls on Ukhrul school
Ukhrul, May 18: A High Tension (HT) wire fitted across the campus of Sacred Heart Higher Secondary School, Hungpung Ukhrul, fell on the school today. The incident occurred at around 11 am while the cadets of Scouts and Guides were performing drill exe.....
Veterinary directorate
IMPHAL, May 18: The Directorate of Veterinary and Animal Husbandry Services has invited candidates for undergoing one year Vety Field Assistant Training course for the academic session 2013-14. Intending applicants could have the detailed information from.....
Fishermen refute charges
IMPHAL, May 18: Refuting the charge that fishermen of Loktak Lake had used chemical to clear phumdis (floating biomass) on the lake, the All Loktak Lake Area Fishermen’s Union, Manipur has urged the Govt of India to institute prompt, independent, impart.....
Introduction of Hindi in DU NEFIS urges, cautions
IMPHAL, May 18: Urging the Prime Minister Office to effect scrapping of the set of 'reforms' introduced by Delhi University in its four-year undergraduate courses, the North East Forum for International Solidarity has cautioned of launching democratic agi.....
Vitiligo Day observed
IMPHAL, May 18: Vitiligo, a common pigmentary disorder of the skin also widely known as Leucoderma, is neither infectious nor has any similarity whatever with Leprosy, according to Dr Karam Lokendro, Manipur State Branch President of Indian Association of.....
Victim, sister called to Court of Inquiry
IMPHAL, May 18: Even as the warrant of arrest issued by Court in connection with the rape attempt on a sweeper by a CRPF personnel has been accepted by CRPF authority, they have asked police to send the victim and her elder sister to assist in their court.....
My Turn
By : Ranjan Yumnam
Image Problem of Manipur's Film Industry : Dasanihe !
The other day I told my friends that I was making a music album featuring my own songs and myself in a cameo appearance. The reaction was astounding: friends looked aghast in disbelief as if I was about to commit a taboo act. As a music enthusiast, I have recorded gigs and those who have listened to them have appreciated my croonings, genuinely or in lark, and I hoped that turning them into music videos would find a larger audience for my artistic dabbling. In fact, I sang for a Manipuri digital film and AIR has been playing it regularly, sometimes on listeners’ demand.
But the objections from my friends and well-wishers to the idea of me playing a marginal role in a music video have intrigued me. They thought I have gone out of my mind even to think about it. The reason they give for their outrage is that associating with Manipuri Film industry is not a respectable and wise decision and it will demean one’s stature in the society. For better measure, they added, “lila falagi mi oiningbro, khara lemmo”.
This little episode says volumes about the society’s negative perception of the Manipuri showbiz and reveals a serious image problem faced by the Manipuri Film Industry and all those working under lights, camera and action routine.
It is an irony though. In spite of the huge cultural impact that films have had on the Manipuri society as a platform for highlighting important socio-political issues, providing entertainment to the people stricken with violence and enriching our daily social chatter, filmmakers and actors of Manipur have not been accorded respect and proportionate rewards they deserve. Just ponder how Manipuri films have become an integral part of our lives: we start our day by listening to film music; we cheer on when our kids do a mime performance of their favourite actors; the entire family get together on the pretext of watching a Manipuri potboiler; teenagers pick up filmy lines and sometimes imitate the fashion and style of the stars. In short, the effects of Manipuri films have percolated into our daily lives, right into our bedroom.
However, the constraints under which the Manipuri filmmakers struggle to produce a film are depressing. If not for the sheer ingenuity and resourcefulness of the Manipuris, Manipuri films would have died a slow death. Chief among the constraints and drawbacks of this industry are the lack of a big market, decent theatres, piracy, the old-fashioned techniques of storytelling employed by Manipuri directors and scriptwriters and the not-so-commendable conduct of the actors in their personal lives.
Small market is a well-known problem. Manipuri films, a majority of which are in Meiteilon language, cater primarily to an audience in valley districts. And most people don’t watch these movies at the decrepit theaters because these films can be watched in DVDs later in the comfort of home—free of cost, thanks to piracy. Most cinema-goers are now being profiled as rustic people from rural places, a tag which further shoo away those genuinely interested in a theater experience. Watching movie in a cinema hall in Manipur is not a cool thing to do if you want to be seen as urbane. This unfortunate categorisation of the cinema-going patrons in an unflattering demographic group has hurt the image of Manipuri films as a symbol of chic and happening.
Then the most under-reported Achilles’ heel of the Manipuri films is its poor visualization techniques, or what we call screenplay. Movie is basically a medium of imagery and directors should draw upon the unique strength of this medium to tell a riveting story—through powerful images that need no melodramatic verbiage underpinnings. An image says a thousand words. In the Manipuri films, it’s the other way round. Redundant dialogues of thousand words are juxtaposed on a lackluster setting that has no visual appeal. Films should be about exciting medley of sights and sounds. A Manipuri film resembles more of a “Visual Radio” than a sequence of images crafted together in a meaningful order. If you play a Manipuri movie on TV, then close your eyes and listen to it, you will appreciate what I am trying to say: It’s just a radio drama in a wrong medium. That’s why all Manipuri films look and feel the same with the lips of the actors rendering the words in hundreds of identical close-up shots. I seriously believe that all Manipuri films originate from Shumang Lila and radio plays where the emphasis is more on the scripts then on the picturisation. So there goes another rating downgrade for the Manipuri films.
I don’t know why the storyline of our movies are again out of sync with the modern trend. In movies after movies, hand-written letters are still exchanged between lovers in this age of email and mobile phones. Our scriptwriters seem to be caught in a time warp of bullock carts and they still use the primitive literary devices of the bygone era. Films should mirror the present reality and should not be used as a vehicle to humour the nostalgic Golden Age mentality for ageing writers.
A majority of our artistes are not well educated. I know this has no correlation with the performance of the actors per se. In fact, the biggest stars of Hollywood and Bollywood are school or college drop-outs. George Clooney never graduated from college; Katrina Kaif didn’t complete schooling. The salaries of stars are so big in Bollywood and Hollywood that people don’t care a hoot about their educational background. But in the Manipur’s digital film economy, actors cut a sorry figure and they hardly make any serious money out of acting. And since acting is not a long term viable career option, people from well-heeled and academically oriented families usually don’t go into films, reinforcing the stereotype of actors as unlettered cute faces hailing from average family background. Next to joining insurgency, films are in danger of being increasingly seen as the last refuge of the unemployed. While film industry in other states is emblematic of exclusive glamour and glitz, Manipuri film business has turned into a cottage industry of the hoi polloi which has denigrated its prestige further.
Unlike in other big states with big markets, we do not have a cult of celebrities, which is neither a good thing nor a bad thing. Our stars are not followed by paparazzi. Crowd do not throng where they go and scramble for autographs (Manipuris are proud people who consider themselves at par with—at least not below—any other mortals). We don’t have screaming fans who break security cordons to grab the shirts of the movie idols at movie premiers. To address this attention deficiency gap, some local actors hobnob with politicians and businessmen to enhance their status but in the process they end up becoming reckless and indiscreet about their escapades giving credence to the myth of actors as modern day courtesans who can be bought at the right price anytime. You know as well as I do that this is a free country and it is well under their rights to do whatever they want, without breaking law and public decency, but the point is, their social antics behind the camera have not sent a positive message about them and that has defiled the industry as whole.
It’s no surprising then that Manipuri filmmakers and actors are not respected. I have never heard of any parents of an IAS officer seeking the hand of actress for marriage, though she may have the looks of Scarlett Johansson or Aiswarya Rai. This general lack of respect for actors may be attributed to circumstances which are beyond their control, yet some of it is of their own making which we have discussed.
And that brings us to the question of whether I should make a music album and risk being branded cheap, undignified and unbecoming of a gentleman.
Dasanihe!
Dr. A. Bimol Akoijam
Dear Ranjan, as I have shared with you earlier, I love your write-ups (you are one of those few very talented writers I admire and we can be proud of). This write-up too started off on a good note with your inimitable style. However, unfortunately it ende
Sureshhidang
Apropos to the article My Turn in the Sunday Specials of your esteemed publication. In the quest of My Turn, the gentleman writer seems to have been in oblivion of the true essence of humanity. I cant but say that it is not a wise expressio
kh. Naresh
Passing a judgement without the slightest knowledge about the subject matter and based on some "hobnobing" bureaucrat's comment is the best theme for any upcoming manipuri film. It is not becoming of a responsible person to say that the Manipuri film in
zade ngangom
while I am going through your article "my turn" i feel like you are a genious, when i re-read it i found you as "dirty fellow"... knowing nothing about the subject how could you give a fake commentary.... your writeup and your dirty thoughts make you " br
rOmeoLaishram
It's my humble request to The Editorial team not to encourage or publish such Article as it not only demeaning certain class of people/section/group/profession but also highly contributing to the re-induction of conflict-class system of society. It is 'al
Ed Cham
Dear Ranjan, you are like "Empty Vessel Make Much Noise"
ojit
Lots of points to be noted and true to its core. However,Mr.Yumnam failed to mention the positive aspects.I would haveloved reading more on prospective solutions. As a writer,he should have thought from different angles and study the facts.
usham tomba
i like some of ur points while some points sound quite immature. but those are ur views and i respect them while keeping my opinion intact. again, can anybody be perfect? i wish u don't get halted by public opinion as that can't b always +ve for ne writr.
metei83
keep it up dude......
