Watching a film now is at the convenience of a viewer with no more bothering of booking a ticket, reaching on time, parking issues etc.
Your phones, laptops and TV are the new screening norms. Digital technology has taken film labs out of the equation and now in these times cinema halls are also not in use. The marketing will change and so will the monopoly of big corporations on screens and timing of a show, which till now was in the hands of studio bosses. We have already started to inherit a new world order that is finding ways to deal with this severe loss of personal interactive contact that was the earlier norm of a collectively shared experience. Will the experience of these COVID-19 times circumstantially motivate a new theatre and film narrative via the streaming platforms, digital sharing, virtual world, conference theatre, Facebook link? The generosity of the teacher in him would have propelled him to spend his time and expertise in addressing this semi-marathon Q&A conversation. Salim Arif’s most informed talk deserves your full-house and captive attention. My talk with him focuses on theatre, the creatively symbiotic relationship with Gulzar Saab, his own work in television and films, India’s multi-language and dialect theatre, Urdu’s status, art and theatre in the coronavirus times and the political that is social and cultural. His work profile reads: a noted costume designer of feted television serials and films, a period detail consultant, director, head of dept cultural studies at Mumbai-based Whistling Woods International (Asia's leading Film School), writer and theatre critic, director of cultural affairs for two International film festivals and visiting faculty member at prestigious institutes. Subsequently this talent and many hidden ones travelled through training and participations to equip him as a very individualistic and respected creative practitioner. A child prodigy of sorts he was a very promising young painter in Lucknow and won painting competitions in schools and in inter-collegiate festivals. That Salim Arif is a well-known name in the field of Indian Theatre, Television and Film is stating the very obvious. I am thankful to this space for granting one the luxury of writing elaborately on a subject that deserves the expanse. This article has been an exploration for me and hopefully would be for you too dear readers. It is a daunting task to undertake summarising Salim Arif’s multifaceted talent and work resume in a few pages, writes Aparajita Krishna. Powerful People Salim Arif: His Work of Many Parts by Aparajita Krishna September 19 2020, 7:20 am Estimated Reading Time: 45 mins, 22 secs