Namrata Joshi is a film critic for Outlook, a national magazine published in India. She also writes articles on cinema for the magazine and recently won the best film critic award at the 52^nd National Film Awards in India. Prior to Outlook Namrata wrote for India Today and Economic Times.

To say that she is passionate about films is to put it mildly. Namrata is consumed by films. She has been on the critics jury at the 2005 Trivandrum Film Festival and the 2007 Moscow Film Festival.

How do you review Hindi/Indian films has always been a bit of a puzzle to me and that is one of the questions that Namrata answers in this interview.
KB: What drew you to Hindi cinema and how long have you been writing movie reviews?

NJ: I grew up amidst film crazy cousins; my father was a big fan of Guru Dutt, Nargis and Dilip Kumar. Hrishikesh Mukherjee is the most loved filmmaker in my extended family. So mainstream Hindi cinema was all around, most weekends meant going to the theatres for the latest releases and growing up with the Angry Young Man. Through Doordarshan of the 80s I also got exposed to the parallel cinema and later did a course in film appreciation from FTII, Pune, which opened me up to the world cinema. I have always loved watching films though doing reviews happened by chance sometime in 2002 when Outlook’s regular reviewer took a break.

KB: Who are your favorite movie critics?

NJ: Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian… even when I don’t agree with him (he hated V for Vendetta, and I liked it). He is just so wonderfully informed, opinionated and readable.

KB: Do you have a running list of things you keep with you when you watch a movie?

NJ: No running list per se. Just a pen and paper

KB: What is the process that you follow in writing your reviews? For instance, do you take notes when you are watching the movie?

NJ: Yes I do take notes, whatever strikes me at any instance during the film. I specially note down the interesting dialogues, have a thing for the film’s lingo.

KB: How do you review a Bollywood movie? How challenging is it to do that?

NJ: No specific process here. The challenge lies in having an opinion and expressing it honestly, simply, at times provocatively, sometimes with empathy. It all depends on the film and your response to it. My aim normally is not just to talk about whether the acting was efficient or not, whether it was a good story or not, did the camerawork measure up or not. I do write about these things but I also think cinema can have this wonderful way of holding a mirror unto us, capturing social trends and reflecting the mood of the times. I try and write about that though not every film might offer you that opportunity.

KB: And when it comes to Hollywood movies do you find yourself following a different set of guidelines in reviewing these movies?

NJ: Not just Hollywood. I love cinema of all kinds, from Bollywood kitsch to international masters. And, of course I can’t see a Race with the same eyes as an Akira Kurosawa. Well the switch happens unconsciously and automatically. You take it from film to film. So, the idea is not to denigrate a mindless entertainer for its lack of aesthetics, but to see whether it has succeeded in its aim or not, whether it has entertained or not. Similarly, if the film is focusing on a social issue one has to see how convincingly and engagingly it does so. For such a film, entertainment will not be a yardstick to judge it with. You can’t compare chalk and cheese, apples and oranges.

KB: Over the years Bollywood films have evolved and you now a whole new genre of films that are technically slick and appeal to the younger generation and in many ways are meant for A class market, which is largely urban. And then you have the slapstick comedies like David Dhawan and Priyadarshan’s films that have a mass market and appeals to both metro and semi-urban area like A and B markets. So, the old way that producers and directors used to segment the market mass film, family drama that appeals to Class A, B and C has kind of dissolved. What are your thoughts on this?

NJ: I think this is great. The earlier notion of one-size-fits-all films was a constraint in the sense that it limited the filmmakers in terms of experimenting with new ideas etc. If they wanted to do so they had to go totally alternate. With audience getting segmented, reaching out to all doesn’t weigh heavy on the filmmaker. So there is a lot more interesting stuff happening within mainstream cinema. Films like Johnny Gaddar, Manorama 6 Feet Under, Mithya, Khosla Ka Ghosla are a reflection of that.

KB: Are there times you find yourself giving a thumbs up to a movie even if the storyline is implausible? Can you give an example of it?

NJ: Yes. Singh is Kinng. Everyone hated it for its mindlessness but that’s the point of the film for me. It’s all about madness. Race was another universally hated film but I thought it was interesting in how each of
the characters is so blatantly morally depraved, is not apologetic about it. It had a most interesting set of characters for Hindi cinema where by the end of the film everyone comes around and villains get wiped out. Even in a so called radical film like Murder, Mallika Sherawat did come back to her husband didn’t she? But in Race everyone is so merrily compromised.

KB: What kind of audience do you keep in mind when you do your Bollywood reviews?

NJ: No audience is kept in mind. I have to be honest to my opinion. A review is a very personal bit of writing. There can be nothing objective about it and it can’t be written keeping others’ opinion in mind.

KB: Do you read blogs on Bollywood? Do you plan to start your own blog sometime?

NJ: I do read though not regularly? Starting a blog is a tempting thought but I guess I am lazy writer. Someone will need to really push me into it. There are lots of ideas in the head; lets see when I put them in a blog.

KB: What are some of the Bollywood films you would recommend for the first half of 2008?

NJ: I liked Rajat Kapoor’s Mithya a lot.

KB: Who is your favorite director?

NJ: Kryzstof Kieslowski is at the very top. I love Wong- Kar Wai, the director from Hong Kong, as well. I love the way they play with images because I think cinema need not just be about the story, for that you can turn to a book. Cinema is about how you use visuals and sound to say something, to make emotions tangible. They are both brilliant with it.

KB: Who are your favorite actors?

NJ: Can’t think of any names immediately. There are a number of them in a number of films.

KB: Do you find yourself watching a film over and over again? And what draws you to it?

NJ: Yes. Many of them–from Chupke Chupke and Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron to In The Mood For Love, Bandini, A Short Film About Love, Kaagaz Ke Phool…and lots many more are eternally appealing.

KB: How do Bollywood actors and directors react to your reviews? You don’t pull your punches when you do your reviews?

NJ: They don’t react. I wonder if they even know of my existence and read me at all.

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