Onscreen kissing: No more a taboo in Tollywood

Indians are always considered to be very conservative in many issues. Right from their traditions to their upbringing and to their movies, everyone has their own choices and do things in private. So much has changed in terms of movies in Bollywood in the past years as bold content has always been a safe target for the makers and many have earned good money out these films in the past.

Tollywood has been on a back foot in this department and such bold content had never been working in the past. Forget the bold scenes, even the kissing scenes are considered vulgar in the film by many. Family audience do not like to see films which have these kissing scenes. But things have changed rapidly in the past one year or so as these scenes have become a hit and even got decent appreciation from the family audience who do not find it vulgar anymore.

Many say that everything lies in the way the director conceives these kissing scenes. If it is aesthetically shot and looks decent and sensuous, the audience won’t find it vulgar. But if there is too much skin show and looks vulgar on screen, the audience gets uncomfortable and avoid such films and only the younger generation watch it in the theaters. 

The best example is ‘Arjun Reddy’ as probably no other recent Telugu film had as many smooches as this film had. But the way director Sandeep Reddy Vanga showcased it never looked uneasy or vulgar on screen. Then are films like ‘RX100’ which had some of these same old scenes in a very bold manner. Their effect was different as the youth got attracted in a big way and made the film an overnight success. But family audiences had stayed away from it.

Films like ‘Geetha Govindam’ which have been lapped up universally and all section of audiences too had a kiss or two. However, the major kiss scene that was leaked before the release didn’t cut it to the final movie that is running in theaters. However, the central point of the movie revolves around an accidental lip lock.

Spy thriller ‘Goodachari’ too featured couple of smooches involving Adivi Sesh and Sobhita and the film became a hit.

Everything is not smooth as these scenes get a backlash once in a while. A kissing scene between Samantha and Ram Charan in ‘Rangasthalam’ changes the dynamics between the lead pair in the film. There are a hue and cry as how can a married heroine kiss a mainstream hero. But all that was easily ignored as the film became a blockbuster and Samantha did not give a damn about it to anyone.

Things are also clear as the censors are giving A certificates to these films from a long time but the parents are allowing their kids to watch the film according to their age. One other important aspect in this the way the star heroines are convinced to do these kissing scenes. As long as the scenes are very crucial to the climax or the twist of the film, the heroines are game for it and have come forward to do these with a lot of dignity.

These days, film makers are not shying away from having these scenes in their films and even the biggest of the stars are breaking the barriers and kissing on screen. The culture has changed and the younger generation are quite okay with the way these kisses are showcased. So gone are the days when these so called kissing scenes were a taboo.