By Subhash K. Jha
Mumbai, Dec 24 (IANS) Producer Ekta Kapoor is in a state of shock after seeing the final product of Dibakar Banerjee’s digitally-shot film “Love Sex Aur Dhokha”. It deals with the absence of privacy and voyeurism in today’s time.

Ekta, who forays into experimental cinema with the film, apparently freaked out at the trial, and wondering aloud what the director had made for her.

“The camera was shaking so much I was completely shaken. There are three stories and all of them effected me very deeply specially the one about the woman who’s shot with a hidden camera,” Ekta told IANS.

“When I came out of the movie, I was furtively looking for bugs and cameras everywhere. I realised I was so jolted not so much by the technique of storytelling which is unlike anything we’ve seen, but by the content which tells us there is no privacy in today’s day and age of mobile cameras and MMS,” she added.

Now Ekta is in a fix as she doesn’t now how she will release this experimental movie in theatres.

“Forget how it will be received. How will we release a film in such an experimental format? It’s easy for Dibakar to make what he wants. Now it’s my responsibility to see it reaches the audience,” she said.

She has decided not to show the film to her parents.

Talking about his producer’s reaction Banerjee said: “When Ekta saw the film she wasn’t so much shocked by the content on voyeurism and free-for-all invasion of privacy as the treatment and format.

“I’ve shot the film on a digital format with a hand-held camera. So Ekta’s first questiom was, ‘Why is the camera shaking so much?’ Her second question was, ‘Who is going to watch this film?’ Frankly, I had answers for both the questions. But Ekta’s initial reaction of shock remains.”

Banerjee, who had earlier directed films like “Khosla Ka Ghosla” and “Oye Lukcy! Lukcy Oye!” says that Ekta is not convinced that such an “unusual and shocking film is viable”.

“But she sees me as this nice, sweet seemingly harmless Bengali guy who can’t deliberately do anything wrong. She’s indulging me. See, normally the digital format is used by a filmmaker for the lack of choices. But for ‘Love Sex Aur Dokha’, the digital format was the only choice,” he said.

The title was nearly shot down by the moral watchdogs within the industry, but Banerjee stood his ground.

“It had to be ‘Love Sex Aur Dokha’. I know the title is reminiscent of ‘Sex Lies & Videotape’. But ‘Love Sex Aur Dokha’ is nothing like Steven Soderberg’s film. In fact, it’s unlike anything audiences have seen. That is why Ekta is apprehensive,” he said.

(Subhash K. Jha can be contacted at jhasubh@gmail.com)