THE CHAOS AND MAYHEM AT MAMI 2010, PVR JUHU.

Unfortunately there has been unwanted chaos and mayhem at PVR, Juhu during the Mumbai Film Festival 2010. For the last two days during the screening of some films there have been disgruntled crowds screaming, yelling, pushing and feeling cheated. The chaos has been hurting the cinema lovers not just because of missing out certain screenings but largely because of the attitude with which it has been dealt.

There are three sets of people handling the festival:

1) The PVR management

2) The Festival Organizers headed by the Director Mr. Srinivasan Narayanan and,

3) The on ground Volunteers.

Now, Set 1 is paranoid about taking care of ‘PVR the multiplex’ and have no idea what dealing with a festival crowd requires and no sensitivity to adapt to the new experience they have exposed themselves to. They are thus snobbishly brandishing their authority where none is required!

Set 3 are the young gun volunteers with rolled up sleeves and pumped up chests running all over the place, sometimes even making hysterical ‘commando’ gestures trying to ‘drive’ an event that could easily run by itself. They seem to be getting a kick out of closing the doors and announcing that a screen is full not to mention signaling ‘roll’ to the projection room to indicate starting of the film!!! Thus seating in the ails to watch a film is a thought that’s as alien to them as a Pedro Almodovar movie is to the auto guy! No one is guiding them and their pumped up energy is only driving them insane and more flustered.

The Set 2- Mr. Narayanan and his core team- which should actually be in the forefront is the most dormant of the lot making every individual who has purchased the festival pass feel cheated and let down.

After having discussed the cause of this issue with various people I finally got the answer when the festival director very simply mentioned it to the group surrounding him. Apparently, PVR management has not taken permission from the fire department to allow people to sit on the stairs, in the ails! THAT’S IT! Because of this they have to shut the doors before the screening begins to avoid anybody from sitting on the stairs and with this act…the war begins…

There are these film lovers enthusiastically or apprehensively running in to catch that film they have been curious to see only to be pushed behind by burly men in body hugging black Tee’s addressed by all the organizers as “BOUNCERS”! That sets the tone, doesn’t it?

However now although on couple of occasions people were allowed to sit in the ails after mass protests and cumulative chants of “Stop the film”, “Let us in”; the problem still persists because of the ‘control freaks’ that the PVR management and the Volunteers are continuing to be. Last evening I went hoarse trying to explain to a group of 4 cool dude Volunteers that instead of screaming at people that the Audi is full why not let the doors open and let people judge it for themselves? That’s what they did last year at Fun Republic where there was not a speck of confusion and definitely not such bad weather! Finally one of the volunteers said, “But sir, we are told to do so.” I kept quiet!

To add to the chaos, now, the cine lovers are loosing their mind and clouding their judgment. While some blame the organizers for closing the doors, some blame the crowds who don’t vacate the theaters. By the quirk of fate in the last 2 days I have been at both sides of the fence…On Day 1 I was inside the Audi when all of us inside protested for the sake of people stranded outside the Audi despite there being ample space in the Audi and on Day 2 I was amidst the crowd that was being shut out of the hall despite standing in the queue for an hour!

I am thus equipped to conclude that if PVR could have got the requisite permission to allow people to sit in the ails they would not have been required to exercise force through ‘Bouncers’ and ‘Cops’ spoiling thus the entire spirit of what intends to be a celebration of cinema from around the world meaning acceptance of varied views and interpretations.

I can only hope that the young Volunteers stop playing ‘authority’ where there is need for none, I hope the PVR management stops looking at festival goers as gate crashers just because they don’t rip a ticket before every show, I hope the festival director and his team become far more active than it presently is and I hope I can see a few more films in peace and a lot less ‘Bouncers’!