Punjabi: A man of cinematic vision

Punjabi: A man of cinematic vision

Joyeeta Dutta Ray, Contributor/Jakarta

In the city of Surabaya, a little boy of eight once propped
himself up on a stool, peeping through the windows of a cinema
hall, watching a Hindi film for three hours at a stretch.

The movie was a free screening for the military. But the
impact it made on the men in uniform was little compared to the
impression it made on the boy. As he walked away, a fiery zeal
lit up his eyes. He promised to himself that one day, he would be
a part of that world.

At the age of 15, the boy left Surabaya for Jakarta. It was
the first step to realizing his vision. By the time he grew up,
he was well up the ladder. Raam Punjabi now is a name every
Indonesian in the country is familiar with.

"I am the luckiest man in the world", the movie maestro says
today. "My hobby is my business!"

Raam Punjabi's life is what movies are made of, literally and
figuratively. Affluence is his second name. Perseverance is his
road to fame. Although he inspires awe and respect from most
quarters, his journey has not been without thorns. His credit
lies in the way he has pushed them away.

"Before 1989, Indonesia had no television industry to speak
of," Punjabi starts. "Movies were limited. In the early 1960s,
Western movies were banned. Only Russian and Hindi movies were
shown on television. There was no dubbing. One had to follow
through subtitles." Yet, whatever little he was exposed to stayed
with him.

When Punjabi decided to venture out in the field, he had big
plans. He teamed up with a director and decided to oversee
production. "I did not know the `ABC' of production then. I
placed my trust in the director and blindly hung on to his every
word."

They planned an ambitious project titled Mama for the 70 mm
screen together and gave it their all without a thought to the
finer aspects of filmmaking such as a strong script or technical
details.

The result was a complete disaster that left him virtually
bankrupt. To anybody else, it may have been the last venture. To
Raam Punjabi, it was the first valuable lesson.

Punjabi gathered himself and proceeded to figure out where he
went wrong. "I felt the need to understand every aspect of
filmmaking. I began doing my own editing, looking into every
technical detail, and creative aspect."

With every challenge, his attachment and fascination grew. The
sum total of his new-found learning encouraged him to attempt a
second film in 1974. Demi Cinta (For the Sake of Love) became a
runaway hit. Since then Raam Punjabi has made six films every
year.

In 1993, the pace slackened when the government decided to
take over the reigns of the business. Fundamentalist views corked
shut his creative ideas. Rigid thinking robbed him of any
freedom.

But determined to conquer new territories, Punjabi opened the
first cineplex in Jakarta -- Planet Hollywood -- and chose to
specialize in the production of movies.

"The government is still unreceptive", he says. "There is no
unity of thought. Viewers have a point, fundamentalists have a
different perspective, analyst's views are not in sync,
international needs are on a separate wavelength. The government
has never understood what movies the country needs" he laments.

He has reason to be regretful. Last year, Punjabi made a movie
Buruan Cium Gue (Kiss me Quick). The film was greeted with
serious controversy, despite it being passed by the censorship
board.

"The film ran into deep trouble. Indications were given to
have it withdrawn from screening. I did so after three weeks,
before the government could ban it, simply because I did not want
to split the verdict between the politicians and the censor
board."

The decision says much about Punjabi's sensitivity. He re-
edited and re-shot sections of the film and released it again
recently under the new title that translates to the subtler One
Kiss.

When Punjabi branched out into television, restrictions did
not end there. "Recently, a broadcast commission was set up to
advise the station on what ought and ought not to be done. The
criteria differed for foreign and international films.

Television has banned kissing. The fact is TV or movies cannot
be connected to the local culture. Movies must flourish in their
own realm to tell a complete story, reflecting the good, bad and
ugly.

It's an environment that has a mix of people. The virtuous or
the good cannot exist in isolation. Why should a human being need
to be a perfect?" he quips.

Punjabi continues, in the same context, "Like every product,
movies need packaging to attract viewers. Even medicines for
children need to be sugar-coated to be attractive.

"The audience does not like to be treated like students.
Messages need to be conveyed discreetly, not blatantly. Viewers
are highly intelligent. They should be left to judge for
themselves."

He has a tough job on his hands. "The press has given us the
icon of pioneers. That means whatever we do becomes a benchmark."

Punjabi's production house is indeed a benchmark, churning out
a series of successful Indonesian serials that have
revolutionized the small screen.

Some are being exported to other countries. A serial for
children, Bidadari (The Angel), which has been running for four
years in a row here, has inspired a Hindi serial in India under
the title Sone Pari.

Punjabi's convictions have turned everything he touches into
gold. Perhaps the only thing more valuable than his possessions
is his heart, a fact that only his close aids know about. If you
ask for his finger, he is known to hold out his hand.

A man inspiring a whole nation is bound to inspire his family
first. While his children nurture dreams of stepping into his
shoes someday, his wife and relatives are integral leaders in his
team.

"In the beginning, local products were not anywhere in the
reckoning. Now nine out of 10 blockbusters are ours. Indonesians
must know that we are here to stay."

His vision for the future is as big as his dreams. "There are
some basic criteria in life -- eating, working, playing ... my
aim is to make movies figure among them. We are planning four
feature films this year. There are no distributors so we will go
straight to TV stations. The risk is all ours."

With his background has he contemplated opening a film school
in Indonesia? The idea hasn't escaped Punjabi. "I have been
talking to the city governor for allocating land but nothing is
happening. If it doesn't, I will go ahead and do it myself! We
will hone new talent. The technical and creative side will take
time. But we will do it!"

Do it he will, as he has always done. Raam Punjabi is a man
who has lived life on his own terms. When he sets his mind to it,
few are allowed to get in his way.