Protest Against Intolerance: National Film Awards Returned by Arundhati Roy and Pradip Krishen

A Bold Statement Against Intolerance

The National Film Awards have been returned to the Bharatiya Janata Party government as a form of protest against the prevailing climate of intolerance. This includes accolades for a film that champions rebellion, free thought, and challenges to authority.

Writer and activist Arundhati Roy, alongside director and environmentalist Pradip Krishen, have chosen to return their National Awards for the film In Which Annie Gives It Those Ones, bringing renewed attention to this uniquely titled comedy. Originally broadcast late at night in 1989 on Doordarshan, the film soon faded from public view.

Over time, the film's reputation has grown alongside its obscurity. Viewers who experienced the laid-back English-language comedy about architecture students grappling with their final projects have continued to discuss it. Those who missed it have rediscovered Annie in various contexts, recognizing it as Roy's first screenplay and Krishen's second film following his colonial-era drama Massey Sahib (1985). It also marked an early television appearance for future superstar Shah Rukh Khan and is regarded as one of the most authentic portrayals of Indian college life, as well as one of the few successful English-language films in Indian cinema.

Penguin Books India has published the screenplay, and generous individuals have helped revive the film's visibility by sharing it on YouTube.

With its depiction of chaotic hostels, camaraderie among students, and fleeting romances, Annie captures both its era and a timeless essence. The film, affectionately crafted and humorously directed, features a cast of notable actors portraying students and faculty at a Delhi architecture college.

Annie is set just over a year before the Emergency at the National Institute of Architecture, which is modeled after the School of Planning and Architecture where Roy studied before turning to writing. This institution is one that the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh might label as a hub for anti-national sentiments.

The hostel conditions are dismal, and the irreverent students prioritize leisure activities like table tennis over their academic responsibilities. They exhibit a healthy skepticism towards their instructors, particularly the condescending principal YD Billimoria (Roshan Seth), who is known for his sarcastic remarks that often undermine students' efforts.

“My dear donkey, have you forgotten all about orientation?” he quips to a student who has submitted an ambitious resort design.

Billimoria has a particular issue with the protagonist Anand Grover, or Annie (Arjun Raina), who aspires to revolutionize India with radical ideas such as planting trees along railway tracks to utilize the waste left by passing trains. Annie's whimsical ideas represent the 'those ones' referenced in the title—idealistic dreams of using architecture for societal benefit.

Roy's character Radha, a beedi-smoking free spirit with a unique fashion sense (her hat and sari combination is a standout moment), is realistic about her chosen field. Like many students in similar programs across the nation, she feels compelled to pursue a career that may be financially rewarding but lacks personal fulfillment.

Emerging as a prominent essayist in the 1990s, Roy's debut screenplay lacks the intensity of her later works. Annie tenderly chronicles the minor escapades of Annie and his friends, highlighting their frustrations with the educational system with warmth and humor.

The film features various scruffy characters wandering the halls in their underwear, coping with their woes to a soundtrack filled with 1960s and 1970s hits. The female characters are largely secondary, except for Roy's character, who communicates in a blend of English, Hindi, and Punjabi, reflecting a post-Midnight’s Children cultural moment in India. Other films like Nagesh Kukunoor’s Hyderabad Blues (1998) and Kaizad Gustad’s Bombay Boys (1998) followed suit, but few matched Annie’s authenticity and ease with Indian English.

Rajesh Joshi’s dynamic cinematography complements the screenplay's relaxed pace, with close-ups focusing on faces that would later become well-known. Rituraj plays Radha’s boyfriend, whose Afro hairstyle matches her wild curls. Shah Rukh Khan appears in a minor role as an effete student known as 'Senior,' while Divya Seth portrays 'Lakes,' a student who ingratiates herself with her professor.

If Annie were released today, its casual language would likely be censored, and a health warning about smoking would be displayed on-screen. Pradip Krishen’s film was produced for television during a more accepting and less polarized time, when it was acceptable to depict students in their underwear and challenge authority. The National Film Awards for Annie were well-deserved, and the decision to return them is entirely justified.