Small-town films flavour of the season: Will Batti Gul Meter Chalu and Sui Dhaaga taste success?

For a long time, the glitz and glam of big cities or picturesque places in India and abroad, if the budget is big enough, have dominated the location choice for filmmaking. However, the trend is shifting and filmmakers are now opting to place their story, plot, theme and characters against the backdrop of a smaller town.

In 2017, the focus shifted from dreamy locations abroad to the hinterland to contextualise stories in tier-2, tier-3 towns such as Varanasi, Lucknow and Bareilly, which added depth and familiarity to the script and characters. It reflected the lives of majority of the middle-class audiences, who unarguably enjoyed but could never really connect to the glitz and glamour of big cities.

And 2018 is following in the footsteps of its predecessor with films like Stree and Dhadak that took viewers to a different territory. Many more films are lined up in the coming months that will tell stories from the hinterland.

First in line is Anurag Kashyap's directorial Manmarziyaan, where the movie-goers will see the representation of the Punjabi culture. The movie is slated to release on September 14. Another film that will shift focus from the usual Bollywood location is Mitron, which is set in Gujarat. Tackling the problem of electricity theft, Batti Gul Meter Chalu is set in a small town of Uttarakhand and the two characters belonging to the handloom industry in Madhya Pradesh will tell their tale in Sui Dhaaga on September 28.

One reason why filmmakers are moving to virgin territories is because the location has almost become a character unto itself and the audiences have also become receptive to stories of ordinary small-towners with seemingly extraordinary lives.

The proof of this is success of films like Dangal, Sultan, Toilet: EK Prem Katha, Shubh Mangal Saavdhan, Bareilly ki Barfi, Tanu Weds Manu and Gangs of Wasseypur, among others.

Stories from the heartland have struck the right chord with cinema-goers and that is majorly due to the relatable characters and premise. No more are people only interested in metro-centric and NRI stories.

Even romance, Bollywood’s staple, has found haven in small towns. Instead of exotic locales with larger-than-life characters, people want to see more rooted romantic stories.

As for superstars, they too are taking up the mantle of ordinary small-town people — be it Salman Khan in Sultan or Aamir Khan in Dangal.

A research paper titled ‘Provincialising Bollywood? Cultural economy of north-Indian small-town nostalgia in the Indian multiplex’ states that, “The small-town may have gradually become more form than content, it might have also become the anchor of a cinema located elsewhere—which would mean a body of films that shun the label ‘Bombay Cinema’.”

Other factors that have led to the shift in locale include influx of new writers who want to tell stories from small towns. Also, independent directors who focus on the hinterland have more ways than earlier to access finance as big studios are realising the importance of such films.

It is also the blend of dialogues and nuances along with quality content that helps build a stronger connection with movie buffs. Take the example of Dum Laga Ke Haisha or Tanu Weds Manu Returns, where the actors have picked up the right dialect to be true to the film setting and character.