It’s a dog’s life: Through the lens

The silver screen has been ever so welcoming to animals; be it the brilliant wildlife we are blessed with or the domesticated ones. It is strongly believed that including animals in a movie’s cast adds that extra touch and strikes a chord in the hearts of the audience.

A Bollywood movie that may be called an avant-garde in the genre of dog movies was ‘Teri Meherbaniyan,’ in which Moti, a loyal Labrador retriever, avenges the death of his master. Not only that, he even leads the funeral procession of his master and wouldn’t let go of him.  

Then there is ‘Hum Aapke Hain Koun..!’ Although the latter was not all about Tuffy (the smartest Pomeranian ever, trained to umpire a cricket match) really, but had it not been for him, Neesha would have married Rajesh and not Prem as he did not have the courage to stand up for his love, isn’t it?

Picture Credits: Rediff.com

A stand out from the latest releases is ‘Chillar Party.’ This movie is a metaphor to friendship as a whole. Phatka is an orphaned kid who befriends Bhidu, the most adorable stray pooch and fights against Shashikant Bhide’s plan to eliminate all stray dogs from the society. The Bhidu vs Bhide movie is a perfect Sunday brunch movie for kids and adults alike.

On the other hand, Hollywood has given us some very gripping movies in this genre as well. ‘Max,’ the story of a war survivor in the United States, revolves around how he overcomes the trauma of his trainer’s death in combat and brings the ones responsible for his death to justice.

Picture Credits: IMDb

Yet another moving celluloid is ‘Hachi: A Dog’s Tale,’ which is about a dog named Hachiko who lived in Japan in the 1920s and became an epitome of loyalty and undying love. He waited for his master to return at a local station all his life not knowing about his demise. There’s this spoiler alert though, if you are embarrassed of crying over a movie, back off as this movie can make even the toughest of hearts cry.

Picture Credits: IMDb

Another tale of adventures of man’s best friend is ‘Eight Below.’ It portrays the survival instinct of eight dogs who make it without any human support in a snow blizzard in Antarctica for 155 days.

Picture Credits: IMDb

A mention of ‘Marley and Me’ would only make this piece complete. Most dog parents have reached home to a torn pillow or a wrecked living room or have been yelled at by their neighbors because their pooch dug a hole in their garden. Well, Marley is all this and much more! The movie recapitulates the life of a dog and how they leave only beautiful memories in the hearts and lives of their families.

Picture Credits: IMDb

Dogs have often been under the spotlight in cinema and received tonnes of box office glory. We laugh with them, sob for them and at times are even frightened by them (those who watched Cujo would agree). The sum and substance of the whole discourse is that this genre of cinema appeals to all animal lovers equally. Did your favourite flick make it to our list?