Why is he trending?
Abbas Kiarostami passed away on 4th July 2016 at the age of 76. Ever since he passed away, there has been a lot of interest about him. I am hearing his name in unexpected places, from unexpected people. I am getting phone calls and SMSes from people who are looking for DVDs of his films and people are forwarding me his interviews and articles. I was surprised when an old friend and a big film buff from Delhi whom I had been trying (without much success) to convince to watch a few Kiarostami films finally called yesterday to know where he could download a copy of Where is my friend’s home?.
This is not just my experience; Kiarostami was everywhere on social media for the past few days. It got to a point in which, some girl innocently commented to a friend who posted a Kiarostami interview, “Why is he trending, any reason…?” Since 4th of July, so much of material has surfaced in mainstream Indian media, internet and social media about Kiarostami (Economic Times, Times of India, Hindu, DNA, Express, Outlook,…you name it.) Lots of people are reading it, liking it, talking about it, sharing it, watching his interviews and even watching his films.
All this is making me happy even though this is a sad occasion. Finally lots of people are going to discover Kiarostami. And lots more who had tasted cherries before are going to re-discover Kiarostami (which is great because his films demand multiple viewing and lots of contemplation). But what I found interesting is that like in a possible Kiarostami script the reason for this new found interest in him and his work is caused by his ‘death’. He was trending because he was no more.
Are we obsessed with ending?
It was not that he was not news worthy when he was alive. He was the winner of every possible award on earth like Roberto Rossellini Prize, Francois Truffaut Award, Pier Pablo Passolini Award, Federico Fellini Medal, Akira Kurosawa Award, Palme d’Or at Cannes, Silver Lion at Venice, Gold Leopard at Locarno, and in 2000 a historic poll conducted among the critics and directors across the world voted him as the most important ‘director of the decade.’
Leave the recognitions aside; for the past four decades Kiarostami was consistently pushing the boundaries of cinema by creating highly experimental, innovative and original work. "Kiarostami represents the highest level of artistry in the cinema." - Martin Scorsese said this ten years ago. Not just in cinema but in poetry, photography, installation and performing arts as well. “The films of Abbas Kiarostami are extraordinary. Words cannot describe my feelings about them and I simply advise you to see his films.” said Akira Kurosawa. But still we never heard enough about him in the media and social media when all that great work was happening.
Kiarostami’s creative energy was flowing in its full stream till the end. But we have failed to observe this beautiful flow while it was alive. The irony is that Kiarostami was an artist who constantly reminded us of the importance of observing. His films are about observation, they are made with passionate observation and they demand deep observation. The Haiku kind of poems he has written about simple observations of a moment. His photographic work is the product of his lonely drives across Iran’s landscape observing trees, birds, animals and snow. But we belong to another kind of an audience who didn’t want to observe what was happening quietly and naturally. We just want to know what happens in the end.
Werner Herzog gave us a sweet warning when Kairostami was alive. Herzog put it beautifully, “We don’t know it yet, we are living in the age of Kiarostami” I think the first part of this line captures the truth best; we were living in the age of Kiarostami, but we didn’t realise it till that age ended. Like in a conventional film, we were just obsessed with the ending.
Beauty of the open ending.
In many of Kiarostami’s films the ending is abrupt. His films end when you least expect. He ends without revealing much, he never concludes anything for the audience, he leaves it open for you to make your own conclusion. By ending a film in this way, he pushes the audience to return to the film in their mind and begin an enquiry to find the beautifully hidden truths, to fill in the playful gaps he created and become part of the creative process of Kiarsotami. So the ending of a Kiarostami film becomes a beginning for the audience.
This is exactly what happened with his departure. He was 76 and perfectly healthy and in his best spirits. He was working on exciting projects, including a new film to be filmed in China. No one was expecting an end. And then all of a sudden he decided to roll the credits. Unlike how it is done conventionally, he didn’t fade away to an obvious ending. He ended at the most unexpected moment. That is why his abrupt ending is generating so much of attention and has become a beginning for many of us to find Abbas Kiarostami.
It sprouted
blossomed
withered
and fell to the ground.
Not a soul to see it.
-Abbas Kiarostami
blossomed
withered
and fell to the ground.
Not a soul to see it.
-Abbas Kiarostami