Lighting up on screen

 

This post was originally published on passionforcinema.com

"I like to think of fire held in a man's hand.  Fire, a dangerous force, tamed at his fingertips.  I often wonder about the hours when a man sits alone, watching the smoke of a cigarette, thinking.  I wonder what great things have come from such hours.  When a man thinks, there is a spot of fire alive in his mind--and it is proper that he should have the burning point of a cigarette as his one expression."
                                                           Ayn Rand – Atlas Shrugged

Smoking means different things to different people. To some, it's a habit they find difficult to give up. To some, it's a way of depicting defiance. To some, it's a tonic which relieves them from stress and depression. There are also people, who smoke just for the love of it and without any reason.  And to a certain minister, it's a claim to fame.
Directors like Anurag Kashyap, Mahesh Bhatt, Shekhar Kapur are dead set against the ban. Film maker like Rituparno Ghosh states that even though he is non smoker, he likes to show his characters as smoker because smoking helps in providing depth to the character. Aamir went on record to voice his opinion against such a ban, but that was prior to Rang De Basanti got a theatrical release. Shah Rukh did a flip flop with supporting the ban earlier, but publicly going against it when the minister got personal with him. Rajinikant has promised the health minister that will not light up on screen in future. Amitabh Bachchan seems to have maintained a stoic silence on this topic.
There have been reports that some cigarette companies have lobbies in the hindi film industry, and because of that some movies have deliberate scenes of smoking.
In spite of all the controversies and hullabaloo regarding smoking on screen, hindi cinema does have some very memorable smoking scenes which leaves a lasting impression on the viewers. It's too difficult to come up with all such scenes which were brilliant, but the one's that come to mind immediately are stated below.

Ajay Devgan in Company, Gangajal and Khakee are one of the most stylishly shot on screen scenes. Smoke filled screen with the dark looks of Devgan, has a mesmerizing effect on the audiences. The pensive look with a burning cigarette in his hand reminds me of the quote, stated above, from Atlas Shrugged.

Ashok Kumar in Howrah Bridge. I had seen Howrah Bridge when I was a kid and have never managed to catch up on it since then. The smoking sequence of Ashok Kumar is one the few sequences of the film that is still etched in my memory.
Sanjeev Kumar in Trishul. For smokers, nervousness and cigarettes go hand in hand. Sanjeev Kumar had managed to come up with mixed emotions during the sequence where Amitabh Bahchcan reveals his identity. His cough after a puff of cigar, is simply mind blowing.

Aamir Khan & Co in JJWS and Young John Abraham with Ranvir Shorey in No Smoking. What a pleasure it is light up a cigarette in school's bathroom without letting your teachers and parents catch you!! The thrill of doing something despicable is irresistible at such a tender age. Lighting up the first cigarette is like losing your virginity. You are not sure whether you are going to like it, but nonetheless you are excited about it. Nothing on screen can depict the thrill with such innocence as depicted in JJWS or No Smoking.

Amitabh Bachchan in Deewaar, Don. Amitabh Bachchan can carry of any smoking scene with panache. Be it the yeh mera dil sequence wherein he puts on his thinking cap, with a cigarette in his hand or the sequence in Deewar before and after he has to face a certain death or the bidi sequence before the gowdown fight, Bachchan has managed to create a lasting impression. How I wish, that Yash Chopra had filmed a sex scene before the bedroom smoking scene.

Pankaj Kapur in sehar. The climax of sehar reminds me of situations wherein people light up a cigarette to avoid breaking down in front of others. Instead of tear flowing from his eyes, we find smoke coming out of his mouth. What a choking effect it had on the audiences. A thought of the sequence is powerful enough to force me to light up a cigarette.

Siddharth in Rang De Basanti. Siddhrath's smoking depicts nonchalance and care a damn attitude. He smokes because it's the best thing to do at that point of time. He finds smoking to be more entertaining than listening to the clatter of people around him. For him, smoking has to be the best experience at that point of time. The second half puts him in a thinking mode and the cigarette automatically disappears from his hand.