Bollywood to make Film on Armenian Genocide

afako

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The man who gave us the sensitive "Masoom", the hilariously thrilling "Mr. India", the gripping "Bandit Queen" and the grand period drama "Elizabeth" has not lost any of his creative zeal. The latest topic to catch Shekhar Kapur's fancy is the Armenian genocide, and he knows it's going to be challenging.

The film deals with the systematic extermination of minority Armenians in Anatolia (modern-day Turkey) by the Ottoman Empire during and after the Great War (1915-1923). (The Armenians had been settled in Anatolia for generations after their tiny country in the Caucusus region northeast of Turkey was conquered by the Ottoman Turks in 1514) The event, termed genocide by Armenians the world over, caused the deaths of 1 to 1.5 million ethnic Armenians in Anatolia.

Kapur had recently tweeted that he was going to Yerevan, Armenia's capital, to collect material on the event. The idea, he said, came to him from a script sent by the man who wrote "Motorcyle Diaries".

"It is a part of world history though a very shameful one," Kapur told IANS during a candid conversation here.

"The idea came to me based on a script sent to me by the screenwriter of 'Motorcycle Diaries' (Puerto Rican Jose Rivera). I fell in love with the script. It is a challenging project though. It will require lots of money, lots of passion and organisation. But there are a lot of passionate people behind this project. So it will hopefully see the light of day," he said.

However, filming of the movie will not start before another year, says Kapur, who is yet to begin work on his long-pending movie on water wars, "Paani".

The Armenian genocide is a particularly touchy topic in the political state that succeeded the Ottoman Sultanate in 1923, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk's Republic of Turkey.

So taboo is the topic for both - the Turkish government and ordinary Turks, that a Nobel laureate like Orhan Pamuk was prosecuted and found himself on the hit list of a far-right Turkish group for openly stating that Turkey had committed genocide against the Armenians.

Does Kapur fear inviting similar censure?

"I invited the wrath of upper castes, the government and the censor board with 'Bandit Queen'. But I did not back down. I believe in fighting for what I believe in," he said with a wry smile.

"Moreover," he added, "there has been a shift in Turkish society. Nobody from that period is alive today. The new generation believes that their nation is great and has to move on. They say, 'Why can't we accept what happened'?"

Controversy is not new to Kapur. He had drawn flak from British tabloids in 2002, when he directed his own version of A.E.W. Mason's novel "The Four Feathers", starring the late Heath Ledger. The novel is centred on the Mahdist War in Sudan, sparked by the death of Charles Gordon (Gordon Pasha). Kapur was accused of being 'anti-British' when the film released.

"I was not anti-British. I was anti-colonisation. That is why I made the film. I made my own version because the novel and the previous film versions were heavily pro-colonial. It was colonial arrogance that led the British to intervene in Sudan. It was this that I wanted to show," clarified Kapur.

The 66-year-old is the only Indian to have made a successful Hollywood film. "Elizabeth" (1998) won Cate Blanchett the Bafta and the Golden Globe for best actress though she lost out on the Oscar. The film, however, received an Oscar for best makeup. The sequel "Elizabeth: The Golden Age" (2007) was also well received.

With the two period dramas behind him, is there anything special about history that attracts him?

"A society that does not learn from its past is condemned to repeat its mistakes. As a filmmaker, history for me is like sci-fi. I can create an entire world of my own," said Kapur.

Film on Armenian genocide will be challenging: Shekhar Kapur - Yahoo! OMG! India
 

The Messiah

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"The idea came to me based on a script sent to me by the screenwriter of 'Motorcycle Diaries' (Puerto Rican Jose Rivera). I fell in love with the script. It is a challenging project though. It will require lots of money, lots of passion and organisation. But there are a lot of passionate people behind this project. So it will hopefully see the light of day," he said.
I'm already won over!

:yey:
 

roma

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look - is it really our business to get involved in all that at least at this stage ? shouldn't we wait for a better consensus from the euros and americans before deciding which way to go - do we want to unnecessarily get into a tango with the turks -. do we have a prob with the turks or instead are we in the process of making friends with them ?

this is not about shekhar but rather about poking our noses into an area that even the full facts are not clearly known

the other side of it is what has armenia done for us that we should seemingly take sides with them ?

or is this in answer to turkey's solid stand with pak ? doesnt turkey recognise kashmir as a neutral ground or rather with india ?

some qns to which i dont have the info
 
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The Messiah

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look - is it really our business to get involved in all that at least at this stage ? shouldn't we wait for a better consensus from the euros and americans before deciding which way to go - do we want to necessarily get into a tango with the turks -. do we have a prob with the turks or instead are we in the process of making friends with them ? this is not about shekhar but rather about poking our noses into an area that even the full facts are not clearly known

the other side of it is what has armenia done for us that we should seemingly take sides with them ?

or is this in answer to turkey's solid stand with pak ? doesnt turkey recognise kashmir as a neutral ground or rather with india ?

some qns to which i dont have the info
We will do what we want. Everyone else can take a hike if they dont like it.

Moreover this is not a govt project
 

opesys

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look - is it really our business to get involved in all that at least at this stage ? shouldn't we wait for a better consensus from the euros and americans before deciding which way to go - do we want to unnecessarily get into a tango with the turks -. do we have a prob with the turks or instead are we in the process of making friends with them ?

this is not about shekhar but rather about poking our noses into an area that even the full facts are not clearly known

the other side of it is what has armenia done for us that we should seemingly take sides with them ?

or is this in answer to turkey's solid stand with pak ? doesnt turkey recognise kashmir as a neutral ground or rather with india ?

some qns to which i dont have the info
I totally agree... This is just not the time to do such a movie...totally unnecessary!
We should continue with Jism 3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10 sequels.....until all the social problems, economic problems, border disputes are solved...
 

Razor

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look - is it really our business to get involved in all that at least at this stage ? shouldn't we wait for a better consensus from the euros and americans before deciding which way to go - do we want to unnecessarily get into a tango with the turks -. do we have a prob with the turks or instead are we in the process of making friends with them ?

this is not about shekhar but rather about poking our noses into an area that even the full facts are not clearly known

the other side of it is what has armenia done for us that we should seemingly take sides with them ?

or is this in answer to turkey's solid stand with pak ? doesnt turkey recognise kashmir as a neutral ground or rather with india ?

some qns to which i dont have the info
Did the Turks wipe out the Armenians from their historic homeland ? YES
Though not as big as the holocaust, does the world even know about the Armenian Holocaust ? No
Does Hollywood dare to make a movie on this atrocity and on the arrogance of the Turks? No
Will truth, stand the test of time ? YES

A very welcome step, looking forward to the movie. Hope it's good and accurate.
 
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Armand2REP

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Look out India, even question Turks on Armenian Genocide and they cut all strategic ties. How important is that relationship?
 

IBSA

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Indian cinema made the movie Letters from Gandhi to Hitler, even though all strategic ties of India with Israel.

So, what problem if India to approach the Armenian Genocide??

In truth we trust!

Satyameva Jayate.
 

roma

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(1) Does Hollywood dare to make a movie on this atrocity and on the arrogance of the Turks? No

(2) Hope it's good and accurate.
guys you have made your opinions known - that was all i was asking

besides making known my feelings above vis a vis Turkey is a moderate member of OIC ( Org of Islamic Countries ) and has quite brotherly feelings toward iindia - repsects india's secular stance and wants to emulate that esp in the light of iran having gone crazy and just next door - some of you have the attitude of " we do what we will" - sure - never mind about strategic vision - throw it all away nehru style - ok fine - you are the opinion makers - i merely suggested the points to be dicussed and theres no hard feeling either way

but i singled out two points from respected members post above

wrt (1) above ;-
is this a case of fools rush in where angels fear to tread ?

and with ref to (2)

Shekhar is visiting yerevan ( armenian capital ) to " gather information " - woiuld he also visit Ankara( turkish Capital ) to do the same to have an non-biased account ....in that regards i wonder if the Turkish people would like to tell him a thing or two :taunt1:

like i said - im neutral in all this - i just think "india " is jumping the gun when the world is yet to form an opinion

Further to that - everybody is zeroing in on Armenia Vis-a vis Turkey while our wonderful strategic vision is more a sstrategic myopia !!

what about azerbaijan - very rich in oil and an even more bitter rival with armenia than turkey

our cosying upp to armenia is goona earn us a nice slap from the azeris

and the next time MMS goes to turkmenistan for a petroleum pipeline project ( part of turkish speaking brotherhood countries ) the azeris might whiper to their bros to just show him the back - side

nice strategic vision ? your opinions please sirs :thumb:
 
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mikhail

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look - is it really our business to get involved in all that at least at this stage ? shouldn't we wait for a better consensus from the euros and americans before deciding which way to go - do we want to unnecessarily get into a tango with the turks -. do we have a prob with the turks or instead are we in the process of making friends with them ?

this is not about shekhar but rather about poking our noses into an area that even the full facts are not clearly known

the other side of it is what has armenia done for us that we should seemingly take sides with them ?

or is this in answer to turkey's solid stand with pak ? doesnt turkey recognise kashmir as a neutral ground or rather with india ?

some qns to which i dont have the info
Turkey has been a good friend of Pakistan since independence due to the fact that both of them are islamic countries(although the Turks consider themselves as secular).turkey has stood by pakistan on the kashmir issue in the past in various international forums,so i guess that clearly explains their stance when it comes to India!
 

Razor

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guys you have made your opinions known - that was all i was asking

besides making known my feelings above vis a vis Turkey is a moderate member of OIC ( Org of Islamic Countries ) and has (1)quite brotherly feelings toward iindia - repsects india's secular stance and wants to emulate that esp in the light of iran having gone crazy and just next door - some of you have the attitude of " we do what we will" - sure - never mind about strategic vision - throw it all away nehru style - ok fine - you are the opinion makers - i merely suggested the points to be dicussed and theres no hard feeling either way

but i singled out two points from respected members post above

wrt (1) above ;-
is this a case of fools rush in where angels fear to tread ?

and with ref to (2)

Shekhar is visiting yerevan ( armenian capital ) to " gather information " - woiuld he also visit Ankara( turkish Capital ) to do the same to have an non-biased account ....in that regards i wonder if the Turkish people would like to tell him a thing or two :taunt1:

like i said - im neutral in all this - i just think "india " is jumping the gun when the world is yet to form an opinion

Further to that - everybody is zeroing in on Armenia Vis-a vis Turkey while our wonderful strategic vision is more a sstrategic myopia !!

what about azerbaijan - very rich in oil and an even more bitter rival with armenia than turkey

our cosying upp to armenia is goona earn us a nice slap from the azeris

and the next time MMS goes to turkmenistan for a petroleum pipeline project ( part of turkish speaking brotherhood countries ) the azeris might whiper to their bros to just show him the back - side

nice strategic vision ? your opinions please sirs :thumb:
Brotherly feelings towards India... Yeah right.:thumb:
I'll stop with that coz you clearly don't know Turkey.
 
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pmaitra

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Look out India, even question Turks on Armenian Genocide and they cut all strategic ties. How important is that relationship?
Not very important, and if you ask me, I'd practice segregation against nay nation that supports cross-border terrorism.
 

Tolaha

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Indian movie watching public isn't a big fan of history IMO! The film would be a flop, unless they add some love, thrill and dance to the movie on a tragedy!
 

Razor

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Indian movie watching public isn't a big fan of history IMO! The film would be a flop, unless they add some love, thrill and dance to the movie on a tragedy!
That is why I hate most Indian movies, esp. the Bollywood movies, with their 10 min songs and dances.
It's time for a change. The audience should develop a more informed, political and intelligent interest in movies.
My favorite genre of movies are historical, sci-fi and comedy. And my favorite Indian movie is Kaalapani.
"Movies with a Meaning" or "Movies with a Message", that should be the way forward.
I hope it's a success and I hope the people appreciate it, coz that will be an indicator that the audience has matured.
 
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hit&run

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First of all Shekhar kapoor is not bollywood but hollywood. His effort of movie making has nothing to do with special desire of Indians against Turkey so hypenation of India with his private endeavor in this particular news is just foolish.

Having said that Indians should first make movie on Genocide committed by PA in Bangladesh and 21st century genocide going on in Balochistan.

But they wouldn't do it, rather they will make political correct movies where at the end Pakistanis are called as brothers, on Dawood's money movies by Shahrukh Khan 'My Name is Khan' and by John Ibrahim in 'New York' bollywood will fight for Pakistani muslims, would take their guarantee that they are not terrorists, in USA when no Indian muslim has reported persecution by US officials because of his name or him allegedly being terrorist, Saif Ali Khan in 'Agent Vinod' who is a RAW agent will glorify LeT terrorists based in London, by letting them kill a businessman by one of their human bomb, Salman Khan who is a RAW officer who has been trained by millions of dollar Tax payer's money will abscond for over grown Pakistani pussy.
 

roma

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ok guys - points taken - thanks - appreciate it

i'lll have to admit ignorance about turkey's diplomatic stand(s) regarding indian pak , kashmir - etc many of my views were based on personal experiences with turkish people - very positive never had any feeling of " you are not a muslim " when with them ( as i sometimes felt with arabs ) ....they are very accepting of indian culture

neverthe less no one has takenup my point that this armenian thing goes head-on clash with the azeris ....and that is an indisputable fact ....the war in nagorno-karabakh ...anyone remembers that ? ....it is sxtilll an unsettled issue ! and a very very sore point for the azeris

so i'll leave it at that - if you'lll reply to that point , i'll have something to add ( i guess ? ) but still thanks - i do appreciate your views - they have been informative
 

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