Once upon a time Bollywood relied on the bushes and the bees to show desire. With the pandemic putting an end to kissing-vissing, will films and TV shows have to press rewind on bold content?
Mohua Das (BOMBAY TIMES; June 7, 2020)

Fear of a different sort of Coronavirus casualty is looming large over film and TV folks — the death of the steamy sex scene in the wake of a pandemic and strict social distancing protocol imposed by an official directive from the cultural affairs ministry that allows shooting to resume within the two weeks but with a compulsory two-metre distance between members of the cast and crew.

At a time when erotic content was sweeping through the Indian entertainment space, boldly aided by streaming platforms, the future of screen intimacy suddenly seems precarious. In April, filmmaker Shoojit Sircar had pondered the same questions in an Instagram post, where he wrote: “How the cinema world conducts shooting intimate scenarios (has) to be seen and planned, after all this is over. Especially the intimate kissing/hugging scenes.”

There is always editing and imagination to rely on, says Prabhleen Kaur Sandhu, producer of Mastram, based on the life of an erotica writer. “Two actors on screen can be made to look closer than they actually are. The build-up of the foreplay is more sensuous than the act itself and, therefore, camera angles and clever edits will become all the more important,” explains Sandhu, pointing at the industry’s need for “intimacy directors or coordinators” — a fast growing tribe in Hollywood fuelled by the MeToo movement — who help artistes and productions navigate everything from hugs and kisses to nudity and faux sex.

Before the pandemic hit, the makers of Mastram — a show on MX Player (disclosure: it is a Times Group company) — had flown in Amanda Cutting who had worked as an intimacy coordinator on a prequel of ‘Game of Thrones’. Cutting told TOI, “Some of the best intimacy is seeing the desire in a person’s eyes, the quiver of a lip, a hand that moves subtly. Intimacy isn’t really about the simulated sex. It is about the story, relationship and moments that cause it to build. As an intimacy coordinator, I have tools to trick an eye to think something is happening when in fact it isn’t.”

Sandhu says Cutting’s team came with intimacy kits that provide thick covers that help choreograph scenes in a way that looks real while protecting actors from unwanted touch. “Something like that can be useful at this time. If makers of erotic shows bring in intimacy experts for future shoots, I don’t see a reason for compromising on scenes that might take away from the essence of a show. Kissing might still be problematic, she admits, “because it’s direct contact and can still transmit the virus.”

Amid several shoulds and shouldn’ts, one thing that is hanging like a double-edged sword on actors and directors alike is whether time-honoured metaphors — two flowers brushing against each other, actors disappearing behind a giant tree to depict a liplock or a trembling bed and gyrating car to simulate sex — might make a comeback.

Filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar, known to settle for an ‘A’ certificate rather than butcher subjects and scenes dealing with lovemaking, pornography and infidelity, is predictably concerned. “There had been a paradigm shift in content for films and web series in recent years. They pushed boundaries and several taboos were lifted. Now with the Covid crisis and no cure in sight, I’ve been discussing with fellow filmmakers about how we can shoot romantic moments — be it on a bed or at a party. Technology can help create a crowd but what about two characters hugging? Can we go back to the primitive days in which flowers and birds symbolised intimacy?” he frets.

Vikram Bhatt, who has been churning out erotic thrillers since the ‘90s and continues to break conventions, feels a return to the chastity of “two doe-eyed lovers” is an “absurd proposition”. “It’ll be bizarre and comical if that happened! I don’t think the current generation of viewers would even understand it,” argues Bhatt, given that romances no longer end with the heroine falling into the arms of her hero but big dollops of straightforward sex.

“At the same time, intimacy applies not only to kissing or sex scenes, but also to a range of human emotions portrayed through physical touch. If one thing is allowed, the others will have to be too,” reasoned Bhatt. Emphasising on rapid testing kits to keep cameras rolling, he dwelled on single location shoots to keep a film or TV show contained in scale without necessarily constricting the story.

“Today you can’t cheat audiences with obliqueness,” agrees Vishnu Mohta, co-founder of the Bengali video streaming platform Hoichoi that has about eight shows with bold erotic content that have been given a raincheck until December when the hope is that things will begin to normalise. “Shows today are built around reality, therefore body language matters. The larger challenge is proximity and how much can you rely on cheat shots and CG?”

Mekala Krishnaswamy, who finished shooting a social drama that involved intimate moments before lockdown happened, highlights why sexual intimacy is increasingly a part of the vernacular. “Our show is about a guy who is down in the dumps when his life turns around. It’s not an erotica but does have intimate scenes because they’re part of communicating a character’s headspace and emotion, not for titillation,” she explains, while speculating on ways in which an intimate sequence could still be shot “after isolating the characters for 10 days, getting them tested, having bathing arrangements on set and a minimal crew.”

But even as lockdown lifts, sanitation is ramped up and directors get creative with how they show intimacy, actors remain perturbed. “No matter how many tests and temperature checks happen, you don’t know where your co-actors have been or who they’ve met. I do eroticas and most of my shows involve kissing. I’m scared and worried,” admits Priya Banerjee, known for turning up the heat with her steamy act in shows like Twisted, Hello Mini, Bekaboo and Baarish across OTT platforms. “While I hope there’ll be honesty between actors involved in intimate scenes, I have already spoken to my manager and producers about eliminating kissing scenes in future projects. If it isn’t needed, I am going to put my foot down. It’s not just about audiences, it’s about life and survival.”

Not alarmed by the possibility of birds and bees stealing her thunder, Priya beams: “You know, I’ll be the happiest if flowers and bushes return! Intimacy is anyway overwhelming so this would free me of any worry, my parents would be happy and the florists would be back in business!”