New gen movies break myth of super stardom: Prakash Bare

Thiruvananthapuram: The recent new wave trend in Malayalam cinema set by a group of young filmmakers has paved the way for breaking the myth that superstars are inevitable for box-office hits, says noted producer-actor Prakash Bare.

"I am not of the view that all films, released under the tag of new generation movies, have quality or substance. But it is true that the trend has paved way for breaking the impression that only superstar movies can survive in the box office," Bare told PTI on the sidelines of the ongoing 19th edition of the International Film Festival of Kerala here.

'Oralpokkam' (Six Feet High), an online crowd-funded movie in which he essayed the protagonist, was premiered before a packed audience here yesterday.

Bare said Malayalam cinema was in the hands of a few actors for many years and the new generation film makers and actors freed the industry from them.

"We have been taught in these years that no cinema can survive without superstars. But bold works of new wave directors, many of them low-budget movies, have liberated the industry from this deep-rooted myth and brought democracy there," he said.

A producer-turned actor, known for critically acclaimed roles in movies like "Ivan Megharoopan", "Sufi Paranja Katha" and "Papilio Buddha", Bare said Malayalam cinema should be ready to shed its inclination towards larger-than-life characters and super-hero images to regain its past glory.

He also opined that actors should consider themselves as objects of directors for the success of cinema.

"Once Malayalam cinema had been known in the name of its directors. Later stars replaced directors and films began to be known in their name. There began the decline of the industry," Bare, who quit his engineering profession to realise his tinsel town dreams, said.

Prakash Bare has acted in around 20 films in different languages, including Kannada and Marathi besides Malayalam. He has also produced a handful of movies.