Negative Effect of Watching Mass Movies: The Dark Side of Star Glorification

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I still remember the time when Mollywood superstar Mohanlal fondly known as 'Lalettan' rose up from the waters in an intro scene of the Shaji Kailas movie "Narasimham" and people in the theatre whistled and clapped at his captivating presence on the 70mm screen. They celebrated his intro; dancing and screaming amidst a huge audience. That was the definition of a mass entry in a mass movie at that time. Following the success of that movie Lalettan continued to do more mass movies for his numerous fans. At that time, being of a young age I giggled at a certain romantic scene between him and his lady love, debutant Aishwarya. Even people around me laughed and clapped when they heard his unique proposal towards her. But growing up, I soon understood there is much more to these so-called 'mass movies'.

When realisation hits you - Once I turned into an adult and saw the scene from Narasimham again, I realised how toxic the dialogue was. I was struck at how an educated lady with a double masters degree responded to him positively when he called her by a foul name and was more than happy to bear his kick if he returned home in a drunken state. To say in the local Malayalam language, she was acting as the typical 'Kalipante Kandhari.' Many people would call me the typical feminist for pointing out such a fact but it isn't about feminism at all, it's about influencing people negatively in the form of a mass scene, dialogue or movie.

When fans worship their favourite stars - It's not just in Mollywood, in other South movie industries, the influence of stars on fans is immense. So much so that they build temples in their names and pour gallons of milk on lifeless star cut outs outside the cinema halls when there are numerous people out there starving and struggling with poverty. The best part is that stars themselves encourage such activities to publicise themselves and increase their fan following. Fans worship their stars so much that if they see their favourite actor commit crimes on screen they are tempted to follow their character's footsteps. So it's not just in reel, but in real life the influence of these 'mass' actor worship can be pretty negative.

When movies set an example for the ideal man - There is a dialogue in the movie 'Dil Chahta Hai' where Aamir Khan constantly taunts Saif Ali Khan and says 'Be a man' when he cannot stand up for himself. It was a celebrated dialogue at that time. But what do you actually mean by that? It's pretty gender biased so to say. A complete man is that 'mass' hero who twirls his long moustache, smokes a cigarette and walks in slow motion according to many. The one who will stalk the lady he has set his eyes on and won't take no for an answer. During their relationship if she says something that infuriates him, a big whack on the face sets her right and you can hear a huge round of applause from the audience for doing that. Men watch these kinds of movies and imagine this to be the idea of the perfect man for all ladies. Toxicity at its peak!

Of course all mass movies are not a bad influence, movies like Kaithi, Katthi and Vikram etc, do offer social messages as they produce mass content for the audience. But in the name of masculinity and star worship there are many stories, dialogues and scenes that are created merely to excite the audience. Filmmaking is no cakewalk but filmmakers shoulder the responsibility of creating movies that leave an impact on the audience. In conclusion, if you are heading to the theatres, do read the disclaimer carefully 'The film is meant for entertainment purposes only'.