Mr. W.Kumar goes to Bollywood
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Arun Prakash (New Delhi, India)
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Mr. W.Kumar goes to Bollywood
“Excuse me,T.T sahib,are you from Mumbai”
Railway T.T examiner Suresh Kapadia looked up at the man standing in front of him,
clutching a leather bag in one hand,while using the other to hold on firmly to the
toilet door handle,from which he had just exited.
“Yes” Suresh replied with a smile he had perfected during the past few years on
this job”I am from Mumbai,kya poochne ka hai,sir”
“I wanted to find out if this train stops at Bandra or a station nearby”.
“Oh no.This is the Rajdhani.It terminates at Mumbai central.You’ll have to travel back
to Bandra from there”
Suresh Kapadia paused and looked up his passenger manifest and continued “Ah
you are Mr.W.Kumar,passenger on berth no 34″
W.Kumar nodded his head.
“Its 4 am sir,it seems you cannot sleep.Aap ko baithna hai kya,idhar main.
please sit”
W.Kumar sat down on the small folding seat,next to Suresh Kapadia.
“Sir,your first visit to Mumbai….it seems so”
W.Kumar again nods his head.
A few moments later he says”yes,first visit.Maybe thats why I can’t sleep”
“Well sir, we will have tea soon..with biscuits,ha”
A minute later Suresh asks Kumar what does he do for a living.
“Well…I am into the garments business..”
“Yes,yes….I can see….you are carrying a laptop….businessmen carry that”
“Oh,that….I can’t do without my laptop.I need it all the time.I
might need to write down something…sometime…somewhere”
“Write? write what,sir?
“Sureshji,you see….I am a writer”W.Kumar turns his face sideways and looks directly at Suresh Kapadia ” I am a writer who wants to write film stories….film scripts…for Bollywood movies”
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“Kya baat hai,sir.Sachi mien”
“Yes,really”
“Very interesting,Kumar sir.Are you carrying your stories with you?”
“Yes.I am…….Here, stored in my computer”
“So,that is why you are visiting Mumbai.To meet some producer…to submit your stories.Sir,Kaun hai yeh producer?”
“No,actually I don’t know any producer…or for that matter any one in the film industry.I have a friend…in Bandra…who knows one or two people in Bollywood.So,I hope to get to meet some film industry people”
Suresh is visibly excited now”sir are your stories good? I mean…I mean…..”
“Yes,very good”replied W.Kumar confidently”I believe two or three of my scripts have the potential to be made into very good movies”
“Kisse ko dikhaya kya”
“Well…my family…one or two friends…but no one who is professionaly connected with the industry.That,Sureshbhai, is why I am travelling to Mumbai”
“Kumar sir,ho sakta hai these people have a different opinion about your stories.After all,they must be seeing hundreds of scripts everyday!”
Suresh continues” sab ko kahaniyan aati hai.Look at that fellow on the berth next to the door.He had been talking all evening,regaling fellow travellers with some interesting tales.Maine bhi ruk ke suna tha”
“Maybe,Suresh bhai….but I think I can put down such tales on paper…in a format where it can be made into a movie.A script,yaar,is just that”
“Kumarsir,the film industry is a very tough place.Arre jigar chaiye survive karne ke liye”. And you say you don’t know anyone.So will you sunao your stories to everyone you meet?”
“Arre,no bhai.I believe scripts can be copied…twisted in such a way that you know its yours but you can’t do anything about it. You know,thats what macchar once wrote on PFC”
“macchar…macchar,yeh name hai kiseka”
“No,no,its an assumed name”
“Assumed name..? I know of nicknames..but this…”
“No,Sureshbhai,let me explain.You are aware of the internet?”
“Yes,yes,we book tickets on the net too.”Suresh beams”Mujhe computer bhi use karna aata hai”
“OK,there’s a website…..”
“I know…website….Indian Railways has one….sir,sorry,carry on”
“There’s a website called Passion for Cinema,in which well known personalties from the film world write blogs….er…articles and readers write in comments and chat…”
Suresh interrupts”Itne vele hai kya,yeh readerlog”
‘” vele nahin” replied Kumar firmly ” interest hai bhai,hum sab ko”. Interest in films.In film reviews.In different types of cinema.Yeh forum hai to discuss and write about cinema”
“Does Bipasa write in too? she is my favourite heroine”
“No,boss this is a serious site.No gossip,no fan mail,etc here”
“OK,OK,and who is this macchar fellow”
“Ha,he writes in comments.Lots of people do,some under real names,some under assumed names”‘
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“Sir,who else writes in?”
“Well,Anurag Kashyap is the most popular blogger here,he’s a writer and director”
“Yes,I know….Black Friday….great picture bhai.Very real type”
“No smoking..have…”
Suresh interrupts”you can’t smoke on the train sir.We have no smoking signs everywhere”
“Oh no,I don’t smoke.I was referring to Anurag’s latest movie named No Smoking.Hatke picture hai.Do see it.” Kumar laughs ” Arre woh bipasa bhi hai isme.Item number mien.”
Suresh nods his head.”Sir, I’ll see it on my next off day.With Mrs Kapadia”
The tea trays arrive.The biscuits too.
W.Kumar sips his tea thoughtfully.Looks at Suresh and says”You know, the script of No Smoking has been put up on PFC.Its the first time a hindi movie script has been posted on the net.”
“First time. Kya baat hai.Sholay ka story bhi hoona chaieya.Kya dialogue bole woh sab log”
“Sureshbhai,there are a lot of Hollywood scripts which you can read on the net. I owe my education,if I may say so,on script writing to these scripts.Infact there are so many sites exclusively devoted to screenwriting.There have been screenwriting magazines earlier,now there are websites too.
There is a lot of software available to assist you in scriptwriting.Contests bhi hai,yaar.
Accha,there are sites where writers can posts their scripts or rather a brief description or synopsis….someone might get interested….might contact you.
Dabba wrote a very informative post….article on how scripts are analysed in the US”
“Interesting sir,what you just said ..and this name…Dabba too.But some of these sites may be fraud”
“Yes,some sites may be fake.That happens on the net,often”
“So,kumar sir, don’t scripts get misused there”
“I am sure they have strong copyright laws.I think you could proably get your scripts registered somewhere….they have a union of writers too….”
“Sir,aisa kuch yahan hia kya?”
“I don’t think so.I read on PFC recently that writers don’t even have a union.I have heard of the film writers association,don’t know how effective they are. I wish PFC would set up a site for scriptwriters….they just might be working on this!”
W.Kumar is quite for a few minutes.He leans back,folds his hands and says”Sureshbhai,its because of the internet that my interest in writing has been rekindled.I used to write in my school days.Poems and short stories.I felt ,even then ,that some of those stories could be told on the screen.
But in the pursuit of a career…writing took a backseat.
With the advent of the net,I discovered the enormous amount of information available on scriptwriting and filmmaking.I wrote a few stories…then a few script outlines….and now here am I …..travelling to Mumbai.
Maybe I should”ve taken this journey a few years ago…but maybe its never too late”
Its dawn and the hazy daylight starts creeping in through the large windows of the train coach.Passengers stir out of their berths,some heading towards the toilets.Kumar and Suresh get up and move to sit on an empty berth.
The first few stations on the Mumbai local train network appear,the crowds of waiting people gets larger on each successive station.
Its a familiar sight for Suresh.He addresses Kumar
“Sir,you are a determined man.I sincerely hope you meet people who like your scripts.Look out of the window,sir.look at the people waiting for trains to take them somewhere.In the evening they again wait for trains to take them home.I see these nameless people everyday,chasing their dreams.
I hope Kumar sahib you make a name for yourself”‘
“well,if I don’t,I’ll go back to Delhi”
“Sir,if you are even slightly succesful,you’ll find it difficult to leave Mumbai.
Aap mumbai ko chhodna chaoge,lekin yeh shehr aapko jaane nahi dega”
Suresh Kapadia stood up,his face pensive
“Sir,can I ask you a personal question? What does W stand for in your name”
“Oh,it stands for writer.Writer Kumar.”
Ha,ha is that your assumed name?”
“Writer is . Kumar is’nt”
Suresh laughs loudly.His two day duty schedule is comming to an end and he is in a good mood!
“‘Give me your mobile no.And also write down the website you mentioned.PFC, was’nt it.I too shall read these articles and pass my comments”
He roars with laughter again.Kumar smiles back politely.
“Take my mobile number too.If you ever need to get back to Delhi ….and tickets are not available….contact me….I’ll try to help. And sir,I shall always remember this day……………….Jab we met….. on the Rajdhani” .
What happens to Writer Kumar next?
Does he get to meet a few producers….directors….agents….fellow writers?
Does he get a break?
Or do his scripts get thrashed around…leaving him bewildered at the contradictory opinions.
Will he make a few contacts….develop a network….go back to his hometown and correspond via the net?
Will he contact Suresh for an immediate return ticket?
Or in a years time from now will we see him dancing down the red carpet,in the closing credits of a movie?
Or shall we borrow a dialogue from OSO, which is on its way to becoming a cliche…..
‘Picture abhi baki hai’
Anurag Kashyap
Abhay Deol
Dibakar Banerjee
Hansal Mehta
Khalid Mohamed
Kundan Shah
Anish Kuruvilla
Jaideep Verma
Manish Gupta
Navdeep Singh
Bhavani Iyer
D. Santosh
Onir
Ashvin Kumar
Ramu Ramanathan
Sudhir Mishra
Pankaj Advani
Revathy
Saurabh Shukla
Shilpa Shukla
Sujoy Ghosh
Suparn Verma
Santosh Sivan
Shashank Ghosh
Shivajee
Pavan Kaul
Partho Sen-Gupta
Prroshant Naryannan
Sam Langoria
Satish Kasetty
Nice article…Waiting to see the baaki picture….By the way, Machchar does not deserve to be discussed at all yaar….According to Oz, he is one of the worst commentators on PFC ;)
Wow!!!Lovely article.Fun to read after a long day at college
.
So Oz? When is the crowning ceremony? What title would I get?
I could give you the title = your real name, so everyone here can know your real identity, if you wish.
Oz why would you want to do that anyway?
And that does not go with the worst commenter’s contest at all :D
Quite a piece of work,really refreshing and cool.Hope to read the next article soon.
Nice article. Best of luck for the future man!
And never give up. Remember that Nirad C. Chaudhary wrote his first book at the age of 90.
Also, you make it or not, I believe that the foremost audience of a story is it’s creator. Write for yourself, that’s all that matters.
And Arun Prakash…By the way I used to write articles here too at one point of time…Not just comments ;) But there were some assoles like Chaitanya etc who ganged up against me even before I got the opportunity to write…Some people like OM etc made fun of me and actually drove me out :?) I lost then ;) but now got the love of you all! HAHA!
Machharbhai, you do seem to create a lot of BUZZ on PFC8-|.
It was your comment about the insecurites faced by a writer in Bollywood that triggered off this article.And ofcourse,the name ‘macchar’ helped me explain the concept of assumed names on the net and take the story forward.
We need to thank OZ for setting up such a site where comments can be expressed openly.I’m sure no one at PFC has any ill feelings against you.
As i pointed out in a comment a few days ago,let the C in PFC stand for cinema and not controversary.
BTW,it would be interesting to know your take on what happens to W.Kumar next:-?
Dubya –
glad my post was of use to you.
@ Vikram,Jitender,KJ,
Thanks guys for your appreciation.
I don’t know if i’ll write a ’sequel’ to this story as yet.I am looking forward to PFC commentators and contributors to take this story forward.
Dabba, I’ve always found your articles and comments interesting and informative.I really wish there were sites where you could submit scripts for Indian movies without fearing that they’ll be misused.
Let me know what you think happens to W.Kumar next:-w
I mentioned it to someone else earlier, you can register mail the script to yourself, as proof of date of creation and keep it sealed. If it ever came up, you can sue and present the sealed envelope in a court.
People have won cases like this in India. Rules – Pyaar ka superhit formula had this happen and the original writer sued and won.
if people modify, change it so much, that it does not resemble your film any more, then there’s nothing you can do about it but it won’t be your film at that point. Get over your fear, and seek.
PFC is full of writers. I’m sure if you did an IView and put up a couple of scenes/pages and asked people specific questions, they will be more than happy to comment.
‘PFC is full of writers’.That Dabba,was an apt statement.
I’d like to request my fellow writers to help take Mr W Kumars story forward.
Another post which inspired me was Bhavini Iyers ‘In their shoes’ in which she mentioned the stuggle by writers in Bollywood.
Arun Prakash, I don’t understand why but while the readers feel the Machchar creates a Bzzzz, the elite “club” has proposed to put me in the worst commenter’s list! But anyway I am sure there is no ill will here…I love everyone here and am loved by everyone here! (Almost)
Coming to W.Kumar…I think he finds his friend in Bandra out of town and nowhere to go…Goes to this bachelor hostel in Goregaon and soon runs out of money! Somehow survives and goes out selling his original scripts…no one bothers! Then he discovers a DVD library! He masters the technique of showing the producers the movie and adapting it into Hindi. From then on, there is no looking back for him! He becomes one of the top writers of the industry!
ha ha ha macchar you think very highly of yourself.. don’t underestimate the power of stupidity, love and hatred:d
Oz, PFC pitcher sounds like a great concept. W.Kumar will have something to look forward too:)>-
Hi,PFC Mumbai folks,
Do you guys get together sometimes?
If you are meeting up tomorrow or dayafter I’d like to attend as I’ll be in Mumbai.
It’ll be great meeting some of you.