It has been happening increasingly of late that a new film uses a viral meme or trending song as part of its hook. The digital, social media age has encroached filmmaking and changed how cinema is created, let alone consumed. Suresh Triveni, adman turned filmmaker, admits that even the editing of many films is affected by makers’ perception of the audience’s attention span. Ahead of the release of his upcoming film, Maa Behen, the filmmaker speaks to Hindustan Times about comedy and filmmaking in the age of social media.
Suresh Triveni on shift to comedy
Maa Behen sees Triveni venture into comedy. As the maker of dramas like Jalsa and Subedaar, it is a drastic shift for him. “Comedy sets are easier on the actor. As a director, I feel less guilty towards them,” he says. Ask him to elaborate, and he adds, “With dramas, I keep telling them to be intense throughout the day. Here, it is much lighter. One looks forward to shooting.”
There has been an increasing influence of social media memes and virality in how comedies are made today in Hindi cinema. Talking about the trend, Triveni says, “We are still figuring it out. Of course, there is a change in technique. Not just in humour, but everywhere. If you see, the edit patterns are changing. Attention span is a constant conversation. But I don’t look at the audience as some other beast. I am myself the audience. My attention span is also shorter. I’ll be wrong to say that patterns aren’t changing. But it’s too early to say whether it is the right method.”
‘Classic storytelling always wins’
But the filmmaker says that combatting this audience’s shortened attention span doesn’t always require innovation. “To gather attention, either you have to scream out loud, or you suck them in the first 15 minutes. Once you’re into the story, you’re not going to look at your phone,” he says, adding, “But yes, I always go back to the classic storytelling, which will never age. You can be clever and try winning here and there, but eventually, classic storytelling wins.”
Maa Behen, his next film, stars Madhuri Dixit, Triptii Dimri, and Dharna Durga, along with Ravi Kishan, Geetanjali Kulkarni, Arunoday Singh, and Shardul Bhardwaj. It releases on Netflix on June 4.