Remake and remixes


A Taj Mahal Remix by me


I resisted myself from watching the remake of the film Don directed by Farhan Akhtar even though I like his films. In fact when I finally watched it on the cable I have to admit that I quite liked it even though in my opinion, it was not as good as the original one. But the matter of the fact is that I am not too comfortable with this concept of Remake. I do agree that many changes have been made to the original one to align it to the present times but the fundamentals as well as the concept remains unchanged.
I wonder how the people of the world, particularly the French, will react to the idea of remaking the Eiffel tower with some modifications and changes. Maybe we could suggest adding a few stainless steel members in between to get some polish and shine. Another remake I may suggest of my mind is the Statue of Liberty. Maybe we can replace the crown in her head with a baseball cap to give it a more realistic look and connect with days generation. After all in current time not many people wear a crown as compared to the baseball cap. Or closer home maybe we start replicating the Taj with a double glazed dome and Grey steel minarets.....
On the other side of the coin sits the remixes. Many songs that we grew up with and were very popular when originally composed are now being recomposed and released as remixes. Most of them got dance beats injected into them with some raps punched in between and not to forget the eye catching videos. Unfortunately many of the younger generation is not aware that there exists an original version and there exists an authentic & original creator, while the new version is just a replica. Now a days the remix version is created alongside the original composition with variable input from the composer. These should be called a variation rather than a remix. But generally there doesn't seem to be so much of apathy against remixes and everyone is happy to listen and dance to those tunes.
Do you really like imitation or accept that there are any sense in imitating? Doesn’t it virtually signify the end of creativity? As we walk through the shopping high street of any popular city which are frequented by tourists, we see scores of imitation products. Replicas of Lui Vuitton bags and Rolex watches or Gucci sunglasses are most common. Interesting enough we use another terminology for such products. They are called counterfeit instead of remixes. These are actually a form of remixes by their own rights. Usually they use cheaper materials where the color and texture are different and inferior to the genuine ones. At times we see that they pick the design of a model and use the material of another model. And in the interiors of the developing world people use these products even without realizing that they are actually the end result of hardwork and creativity of some designer and design house.
Hence I conclude that the matter of the fact is that someone has decided for us that remakes of movies are acceptable and remixes of old music are acceptable but a replica of a Rolex or a Gucci handbag is definitely illegal and a counterfeit.

Comments

  1. What an interesting post! As a student of Eng Lit, we have always regarded remakes as "Inspired originals". Shakespeare, for instance, has rewritten many old stories in his unique way.

    Dev-D, I felt, was a wonderful remake.

    And as for replica Guccis and Rolexes, Mumbai's Fashion Street and Linking Road would be empty without them!

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  2. This was a very thought provoking post, I like the way your mind works.;)) I too am often appalled and even outraged over a remake of a song or movie. Mots of the time I think it is bad; the artist or the director has done a poor job and the result is a disgrace to the original.

    Sometimes, even though it is an exception, than a rule, some of the covers are better then the original, or come more in a contemporary packaging that makes it easier to appreciate.;) I think one should be allowed to enjoy both the cover and the original. My boyfriend at almost all times will never watch any remakes of any movie he loved in the firts place.;))

    Thank you so much for your always kind comments at my place, I really appreciate them.;))

    Wishing you a lovely Friday.;))

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  3. On our recent visit to Italy, my husband absolutely forbade me to buy fake gucci purses. The originals were unaffordable. So tell me, what if I want a good design but do not have the money to buy the original?
    Some how the remix music is unacceptable to me.
    Because I think you are making money exploiting someone else's talent.

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  4. that picture of the remade taj by you does look awesome!! I can see the statue of liberty with the base ball cap and a laptop in hand instead of the torch, or an iphone maybe..great post..am ambivalent to remix songs..i loved the remix version of pagla hawa badol din e in bong connection..and I would go for an unbranded item than a fake branded one..that much I am sure of.

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  5. I appreciate for your very nice and interesting post.The picture looks very beautiful.

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  6. Very interesting post,Suman! Just a bit of a correction...you mentioned Don having remade by Karan Johar? It was actually remade by Farhan Akhtar.
    Honestly I'm not very much in favour of remakes or remixes.I somehow feel it kills the whole authenticity. For instance I cant even imagine the songs of Umrao Jaan being remixed or a song like 'tere mere milan ki yeh raina' being remodified according to today's tastes.Or for that matter,Dilwale Dulhaniya Lejaayenge being remade with some other castes.Nobody can create the magic that SRK & Kajol did in that one movie ever.

    Absolutely agree with you.It signifies the end of creativity.

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  7. Sucharita,
    I guess there is an argument that today’s generation should be able to have a taste of some old classic. But creative minds should create originals and not to forget everything that is true for a particular time in history…..
    I thought there is a double standard in differentiating remake, remixes against replicas. While fundamentally there are the same.
    Protégé,
    Yes it is very difficult to hear a song that we grew up with getting mutilated by a re mixer, no matter how well he does that.
    Yes I guess one ends up seeing both the versions at one point of time. But if we all start making this concept popular, then there will be time when we will not have originals coming our way.
    Thanks for your nice words.
    Aparna,
    Buying fake as an alternative to the original is definitely supporting counterfeit trades. It does harm to creativity and one day we will see that entrepreneurs are not coming up with their own design but survive by copying other successful products.
    I think what is true for remix is true for everything
    Sujata,
    It was a few minutes effort to get that glass dome into the Taj. But changing the Statue of Liberty was not my cup of tea… But it would have been interesting to see Ms Liberty with the iphone and other gadgets!
    I did not have the opportunity to listen to the bong remix. I will try this time.
    It is relatively easy to identify a replica of a bag or a watch but when it comes to clothes it is next to impossible for lesser mortals like me!
    Swatantra,
    Thanks for your visit.
    Babli,
    Thanks for visiting.
    Deeps,
    First of all let me thank you for correcting the error. I knew there was something wrong while I was writing it but could not identify the mistake.
    That’s the point…. Why mutilate a wonderful composition. Why punch those raps into the songs that we all like so much. Why not create one of your own ... the whole thing!

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  8. Very nice post. The success of remake depends on when it seen. If one sees the remake first and then the original, the personnel will like the most of the time remake.

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  9. Rajesh,
    thats correct and that is where the problem lies. Today's generation does not even know that there was a original

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  10. Look at what they did to KATA LAGA,VADA RAHA....even i avoided watching DON but saw Devdas so as to see how far can one go with remaking a classic...

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