Vampires – A new beginning or the end?

Little did Bram Stocker know how people would react when he created a character called “Dracula” in 1897! It was first adapted in a stage play which went on to become a classic horror movie called “Dracula” in 1931. Film lovers loved the movie and claimed it to be the best horror movie of the era. It was said by many that after watching the movie they could not sleep for weeks together. Vampire was equalled to horror genre at that time.

A character that sucked blood could not be capable of loving and being loved was the basis and he or she was a demon that demonstrated.

With Dracula, a vampire made it to the human world as a beast that is best known to hamper your well-being and is a danger to you. People got scared of the word Vampire and it soon became associated with the words of ghosts, spirits etc. Slowly and gradually the vampires became history and people grew to remember only Dracula and forgot what he depicted. It was shocking to know that generations later people could not related Dracula to a Vampire and showed surprise when they were told so.

Lots of people which included directors, story writers, film makers, novelists etc. tried to bring back Vampires. Movies like Underworld were a piece of such imagination but sadly they never struck a chord with the people who never got around to watch such movies except when they were totally spent of other things and had nothing better to watch and were forced to watch this. But nothing got the vampires back to the world.

Suddenly Stephanie Myers stepped in and made Vampires into this beautiful, awesome, hot looking blood sucking creatures who had a heart of a human (not to forget vampires have no heart, they are dead walking) and you could actually love them.

With Twilight she gave a whole new dimension to the Vampires and made them worth human love. It actually brought the age old legend of Vampires v/s Werewolves into picture and built a beautiful four book story around it which was later captured into a motion picture.

Everyone started aping soon after. Movies, series everything revolved round the Vampires suddenly. It became a trend to have a loving Vampire around you. The Vampire Diaries, a hit series in the US, has entered into its third season and still is the most watched supernatural series.

India did not stay behind with the Vampire cult building in. A popular TV channel Star One started off with the Vampire serial “Pyaar ki yeh ek kahani” which happens to be a mix of Twilight and Vampire Diaries in a total desi format. The show hit the channels raising viewership. There are many hits on youtube too for this particular serial. A separate blog updating the daily story for the serial has also been created and it happens to be a popular blog.

But the question still prevails. How adaptable is the Indian media industry to accept a culture which talks about vampires. Aren’t our supernatural beliefs different from our foreign counterparts? If yes, then what is the future for the Indian version of Twilight? A part of us still loves horror but showing a beast in the most loving manner possible is still not widely accepted concept in India. Keeping all this in mind, it is going to be a tough call for the TRPs of Pyaar Ki Yeh Ek Kahani. Also worldwide post a new resurrection of the Vampires, how long will this cult sustain is also a question.

Even if there is a part of me that says it’s a passé, I am kind of enjoying the movies and the Vampire cult myself. Hail! vampires. Hail! Edward who changed the vampire face for the audiences around.

Deepa