An unusual change is happening in the north-eastern states of India, especially Nagaland. Today’s teenagers seem to connect better with foreign cultures than their own. They can spend hours watching extremely long and painfully slow Korean serials but have no patience to listen to elders or to learn about their history. The K-pop culture has hit young people in the state. Many like to dress and act like them—they are Koreanised. There is nothing wrong in that trend and it should not be considered a threat to our culture as long as students do not end up spending more time on watching movies than they do books. It is important though to look deeper and understand the underlying reason for the obsession Naga youths have for foreign movies in foreign language.
There is no dearth of talent in Nagaland in almost every field. But the state is entertainment-starved. Neighbouring states like Assam and Manipur have established film industries and a strong foundation in theatre. Bollywood movies are banned in Manipur but the film industry there churns out enough Manipuri language films every month to entertain the people. The Assamese film industry keeps producing award-winning movies. People in these states do watch Korean and Hollywood movies but the craze for it in Nagaland is on another level. The reason for this craze is simple and plain: There is a dearth of vernacular language movies in the state. There are a few groups in Nagaland like the local drama group, Dreamz Unlimited, but not a proper film industry even after 55 years of statehood within the Indian union.
Humans, both young and old need entertainment. The lack of it can force them to look for alternatives. In the case of Nagaland, many youngsters have turned to Hollywood, Korean and other language films to spend their leisure time on, and to quench their entertainment needs. But people can also land in bad habits when they are bored and fed up of doing same things repeatedly. It won’t be easy to start a film industry in the state now because of the risks involved; and the possibility of critics attacking like a pack of hyenas in case of failure. But somebody has to start somewhere. Film personalities including directors, actors, producers, sound engineers, artistes, and cinematographers from the state recently floated a new body called the Nagaland Film Association, on Jan. 22, to encourage and look into the welfare of filmmakers. But that is not enough: Nagaland needs an organised film industry, badly.
