Five Point Someone and 3 Idiots

जागरण संपादकीय ब्लॉग

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The imbroglio over the latest Aamir Khan starring film ‘3idiots’ has taken an ugly turn with Chetan Bhagat, the author of the book ‘Five Point Someone’ from which the movie has been adapted, accusing the film makers and the actor of not giving him due credit.

The writer who has of late come into prominence as India’s best selling novelist, has contradicted the claims of those associated with the film and had proclaimed their film to be different from the book. He has made caustic remarks against the actor Aamir Khan who had alleged that since the film had become successful, Chetan was trying to steal credit from the script writer. Both the sides have been making vituperative remarks in the media and till now have refrained from approaching the judiciary, where the dispute should have been appropriately referred and settled.

We shall know the fate of this dispute, in due course of time, but the controversy in itself has left a bitter taste in mouth.

Chetan Bhagat has emerged as India’s finest and best selling fiction writers in the English language. An IIT Delhi and IIM Ahemadabad alumni, Five Point Someone was his first and till now amongst his best works that earned him acclaim, recognition and mass sales. The success of this and his subsequent novels, spurred him to give up an investment banking career in Hong Kong and become a full time writer in Mumbai.

The book in mention, ‘Five Point Someone’ is a masterpiece. It is a classic tale of three friends in IIT Delhi, their journey under pressures of life, their endeavour to cope up with an academic curriculum which is amongst the most demanding in the world, the social and family expectations out of them which are almost surreal and the endurance threshold which varies in every individual and can at times capitulate when subjected to more than its capacity. The book has humour, intrigue, capriciousness and is so well written that as a reader you marvel at the writer’s adroitness to use the plot as a subterfuge to insinuate mordant comments about our educational and social system.

The marvellous quality of Chetan Bhagat’s writing has been that it conveys the message in a simple manner; as a reader you enjoy and laugh your engrossing journey through the book without even once feeling the pressure of intense reading and yet by the end of it there is learning that you draw from the book which makes you erudite but since the journey through the book has been as smooth, the learning appears serendipitous.

Having understood the credentials of one party to the dispute, let us now briefly touch upon the other side.

The people associated with the film ‘3 idiots’, the lead actor Aamir Khan, the producer Vidhu Vinod Chopra and the director Rajkumar Hirani are hugely successful, venerable film professionals. Their past track record imparts phenomenal credibility.

The film in the centre of controversy ‘3 idiots’ is undeniably extremely well made and is on its way to becoming a blockbuster. I do not recall, in the recent past, having walked into a packed/choker bloc theatre to watch a film a week after its release. The film makers should be exulted that like so many of their earlier creative works, their latest endeavour has also received tremendous acclaim and applause.

When the parties to the dispute have such formidable credentials, it becomes very difficult to side with one.

However the truth has to pervade all biases and preferences. Any analyst who has read the book and seen the film, should candidly express that the film is unquestionably, undeniably adapted from the book. I am not even saying inspired but I shall go a step forward to say that the film is based on the book and any contrary assertion made by whosoever is apparently mendacious and must be denounced.

You cannot deny that the basic plot is borrowed from the book. It would be baloney to suggest that the characters and the script of the film are independent or only loosely inspired from the book.

The engineering college IIT Delhi in the book has become ICE in the film and the characters Ryan, Hari and Alok from the book are enacted as Rancho, Farhan and Raju. Professor Cherian and his daughter Neha from the book become Virus and Pia in the film.

The background and stories surrounding the characters have lurid similarity as well; what with the professors son mentioned as having committed suicide under pressure of cracking the engineering entrance examination and the slough state of the family of one of the characters, his attempt to kill himself by jumping down from a height, failed endeavour of the protagonists to steal the examination paper.

I traverse back in time to the early eighties. A film called ‘Kalyug” was produced by Shashi Kapoor and directed by Shyam Benegal. That film was based on our ancient epic ‘Mahabharata’ and was a modern rendition of the historic tale. Nobody questioned the basis of that film since nobody could have claimed credit for the historic Hindu epic.

I can speak with conviction that the film ‘3 idiots’ derives as much from the book ‘Five Point Someone’ as the movie Kalyug derived from the Mahabharata. I think it makes for an apt analogy.

The aforementioned adaptations in the film from the book are sufficient to refer to the former as having been based on the latter. Yes the end of the film is different from that of the book but that alone is too less to provide the film an identity radically different the book. The movie traces its provenance in the book and that is axiomatic from the similarity in plot, concept, and characterisation and detailing.

If reports in the media are to be believed, the author Chetan Bhagat had entered into a contractual agreement with the film producer and has been compensated accordingly. He cannot now in law revisit the compensation issue only because the film has become a stupendous success. He is bound by his contract as far as remuneration is concerned.

But a creative writer deserves more than monetary remuneration. The reward for his effort is as much recognition as compensation. It is the latter that he is demanding. Yes there is mention of him and his book in the end of the film; but does that suffice? Another pertinent point he has raised is that people other than him have been credited with the story of the film and he is questioning the righteousness of that.

The legality and tenability of his demand can only be decided by the related experts.

However as an unbiased reader and viewer, without any knowledge of the fine print of the legal agreement drafted between the two parties, my perspective is that ethically speaking, acknowledgment should not be hidden somewhere in the end credits of the film, it has to figure more prominently. A viewer going to watch the film must at the onset be unambiguously, unequivocally and very conspicuously informed that the film is based on the work of a novel writer; anything less than that appears to be iniquitous and reveals an obscurantist approach.

Additionally when a substantial part of the film, difficult to quantify but may be over 70% is based on the book, giving story credit in the movie to people other than the author of the book comes across as prima-facie inappropriate.

The above are of course only moral stands in an ideal scenario and the legal interpretations may entirely be disparate. The film makers have been saying in the media that the author contracted away the rights over which he is harping today and if that is true, he can only garner sympathy and nothing more.

Film making is a specialised craft. The narration of a story book in the form of a film requires special skill; there will always be that element of cinematic liberty and leverage; besides cinema is an audio visual medium as compared to a book which is a textual medium. Hence the reach and impact of cinema can be greater than that of a book and also the nature of medium makes narration and depiction in cinema vary from that in the book. Those differences are attributable to the intrinsic nature of the two mediums and talented professionals are able to beautifully adapt to suit the medium.

But can those nuances of two different mediums challenge or belittle the very foundation which is the story on which the entire edifice of a film that is the screen play based?

No creative person, whether an artist, writer, musician or film maker, can claim to be entirely original. We all seek inspiration from the environment around us. There is only one original creator and that is the Almighty; all other mortals are always borrowing from somewhere or the other. Portraying the story of a book in the form of a film is as much an art and skill or perhaps even more as is remixing old music composition to make a more contemporary rendition. Seeking inspiration should not in anyway denigrate the work of the creative people.

But the law of the land will have to guard against inspiration being used as a euphemism for plagiarism.

The intellectual property of a creative person has to be protected in a civilised society governed by certain laws, rules and regulations. The related laws in our country are yet to be implemented the way they should be. The lack of effective enforcement of IPR has been the bane of our industry, whether pharmaceutical or media, entertainment and information. It has also resulted in our system being subjected to sardonic remarks by the developed nations especially the drug manufacturing and some creative sectors. Our system must ensure adequate protection, compensation and recognition in case of intellectual property.

We must view this controversy, which may appear to be trivial, but in the wider ambit, as a microcosm that encapsulates the entire magnitude of our IPR problem.

The resolution of the current controversy can entail unravelling a legal labyrinthine puzzle, which is best left for the lawyers to argue and judiciary to decide.

It does although prompt me to revisit the earlier point I made; whatever be the fate of this dispute the imbroglio in itself has left a bitter after taste.

The controversies shrouding the film, does for me somewhat besmirch the joy of a wonderful film.

After reading a memorable book and watching a remarkable film based on that book, observing the feud between some brilliant creative geniuses makes one cringe. Writers are thinkers and there is so much learning they impart to the society and give it direction.

Cinema as a mass entertainment medium is unparalleled and can be used as a platform to not only entertain but also educate.

Films have the potential to impart mass appeal and receptivity to the writer’s vision and ideology.

Creative professionals from these fields, who are masters of their craft, should in the interest of the society, compliment each other rather than be at loggerheads. They are role models for the society and their conduct should be beyond reproach.

Talking about conduct, I would like to mention the behaviour and attitude of the film producer in a press conference. Asking a journalist to shut up because he poses a pesky question, hostile body language, and mindless aggression is reflective of a querulous/petulant nature and character. It deservingly will draw pejorative comments across the media. With great success should come great humility, I hope the film makers will remember that.

I wish our system can provide not only the resolution to the present dispute but also a deterrent for such controversies in future. The IPR laws need to be strengthened and applied with as much dexterity so as to subvert any sleight of hand attempt to circumvent those.