Discussion of space in Yash Chopra’s reel Punjab versus real Punjab.

solicited thanks to Viswaroop Misra
INTRODUCTION
Born in Lahore ,to a Punjabi family Yash Chopra started his career as an assistant director followed by script writer ,director and producer.To be precise he was an embodiment of art and a personification of act.In the context of topic concerned we are going to discuss the perspectives of Yash Chopra as presented in movies like Silsila(1981),Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jaayenge (1994),Veer-Zara(2004) and many such screen shots set on the back drop of Punjab and its culture, that he flamed to life through his lens and brain.
PUNJAB AGRICULTURE : an element of mental space of british governance
Agriculture is the largest industry in Punjab.Some two-fifths of Punjab’s population is engaged in the agricultural sector, which accounts for a significant segment of the state’s gross product. Punjab produces an important portion of India’s food grain and contributes a major share of the wheat and rice stock held by the Central Pool (a national repository system of surplus food grain). Much of the state’s agricultural progress and productivity is attributable to the so-called Green Revolution, an international movement launched in the 1960s that introduced not only new agricultural technologies but also high-yielding varieties of wheat and rice.
Aside from wheat and rice, corn (maize), barley, and pearl millet are important cereal products of Punjab. Although the yield of pulses (legumes) has declined since the late 20th century, there has been a rapid increase in the commercial production of fruit, especially citrus, mangoes, and guavas. Other major crops include cotton, sugarcane, oilseeds, chickpeas, peanuts (groundnuts), and vegetables.
As per soil system,relief,climate and drainage is concerned Punjab does not occupy a particularly so strong and agriculture favourite part of India.There are many parts of country where a better climate favourism towards agriculture can be seen but they are not as prosperous as Punjab.
Punjab’s prosperity in agriculture sector comes from the mental structure of British rule.As the British governance divided different part of country for specialized contribution in different sector Punjab was allotted the agriculture sector .Likewise Bengal was made education and literature hub,and Bokaro like cities were made manufacturing hub.

The agriculture prosperity of Punjab has widely inspired the movies of Yash Chopra which has been reflected in songs of movies like DDLJ and VEER-ZARA.Yet Yash Chopra has always and always depicted only the beautiful greenery and romantic charm of Punjab agriculture.

LIVED SPACE OF PUNJAB : present scenario of society
Lived space refers to the real space of Punjab that represents the grass root level realities. It tries to include a critical examination of space concerned and hence put forth the unbiased realities. Though agriculture is the largest industry in Punjab; it is the largest single producer of wheat in India.But there lies a heart rendering struggle and a heart rendering byproduct of this achievement.

• A fast paced development in agriculture has led to issues like excessive use of pesticides and hence over exploitation of land resources.
•  Some of the villages like Malwa is getting epidemically clutched in cancer due to over use of fertilizers in agriculture .
• Drinks and drugs have overshadowed each and every family of Punjab.
• Farmer suicide rate is accelerating like anything.

Agriculture prosperity and land exploitation 
The green revolution has been lauded for what it did for our country. We went from a country begging for food to being an exporter. However, along with it came several drawbacks too, the foremost being the increased cancer prevalence in Punjab which contributed majorly to the revolution. Natural pesticides and fertilizers used earlier gave way to the more =effective‘ but deadly artificial ones. Little did anyone know the perils it would expose them and the generations to come. According to the latest statistics released by the Punjab Government, Punjab has over 90 cancer patients per one lakh population. This is much higher than the national average of 80 per lakh. The Malwa region, also known as the =cancer belt‘, has the highest average of 136 cancer patients per one lakh of population. Data over the last five years has shown that 18 people die of cancer every day, on an average. Below statistics showing breast cancer in punjab The connection is hard to ignore – Punjab with just 2.5 per cent of the agriculture land of the country consumes around 18 per cent of pesticides used in India, a very high number by any standard. There are high subsidies provided by the Government on pesticides in the state and this has led to their indiscriminate use. The drug menance Drug glut in Punjab has become a social menace and erosion of social trust is adding to it‘s wide spread prevalence. The figure of 61,000 known cases of AIDS and other statistics do not depict the scenario on the ground in Punjab.

Farmer suicide
Punjab's agricultural sector grew at 1.6 per cent during the 11th Plan against the national average of 3.41 per cent. The growth is tardy owing to near saturation in productivity. The rural debts in Punjab are estimated to be Rs 35,000 crore. The number of indebted rural households in Punjab is 66 per cent, third highest in the country after Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. The Government of India's debt waiver scheme of 2008-09 failed to benefit state farmers as there are less number of small and marginal farmers and few loan defaulters in the state," Punjab Finance Minister Parminder Singh Dhindsa said while announcing a first-of-its-kind allocation in the state budget presented this week — Rs 30 crore for suicide-hit families. The Punjab government's decision to fix a price for farmer suicides has triggered a controversy, with the opposition Congress questioning the rationale of fixing an outlay in the budget without citing the figure of suicide-hit families. "Are they saying just 1,500 families have witnessed farmer suicides, to put an allocation of Rs 30 crore in the budget. This defies under Centrally-sponsored schemes for the farm sector, while saying it is reeling under crisis.

 Cancer express
Passenger Express 339 enters Bathinda railway station around 9 pm, as if blindfolded by the dark winter nightAs many as 70 patients per day on an average travel on this train from Bathinda that it has come to be known as the ‘cancer express’, and the region as ‘cancer belt’. An epidemiological study done by the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh, concluded the incidence of cancer is higher in this area than elsewhere in the state. Cancer death rate was 51 per lakh per year in Talwandi Sabo of Bathinda as compared to 30 in Chamkaur Sahib, outside Malwa.

PERCEIVED SPACE OF PUNJAB AND YASH CHOPRA’S PERCEPTION
Perception varies from person to person.It refers to the abstract space of Punjab that may differ according to perspective. What Yash Chopra presents on the screen is an optimistic and utopian art that may or may not be part of real space of Punjab.The most versatile reason behind this perception can be Yash Chopra’s nostalgia.His memories and attachment with Punjab of his childhood gets reflected in his movies.It is in his nostalgia there lies a Punjab of artistic calibre, a Punjab of love life and romantics and a Punjab of bonding and cooperation.
However it may be considered as a heterotopian space as yash chopra kept on trying his best to portray the idealistic romanticism painted with Indian culture.

SOCIAL SPACE OF PUNJAB
Social space of Punjab includes physical or virtual space such as a social center, online social media, or other gathering place where people gather and interact. Some social spaces such as town squares or parks are public places; others such as pubs, websites. or shopping malls are privately owned and regulated.Thus every element of Punjab that ensures a chance of sociability can be considered as social space. Compared to other part of country social space of Punjab is more and more lucarative.These people are know for honesty .Also there are less significant statistics of family divide/separation in Punjab as compared to other states of country.Yash Chopra's Veer Zara very effectively and efficiently illustrates the lustures of social space of Punjab.

GLOBALIZATION OF PUNJABI CULTURE THROUGH DDLJ
Punjabi Culture is the culture of the Punjab region. It is one of the oldest in world history, dating from ancient antiquity to the modern era. The Punjabi culture is the culture of the Punjabi people who are now distributed throughout the world. The scope, history, sophistication and complexity of the culture are vast. Some of the main areas include Punjabi Philosophy, poetry, spirituality, education, artistry, music,, science, technology, military warfare, architecture, traditions, values and history.
 It is said that DDLJ globalized hindi cinema beyond the language used in the movies and the culture being talked about. To understand DDLJ‘s power, one has to understand the India of 1995, the power of globalization and the way that Raj‘s international style and desi heart spoke to a generation and a growing diaspora.  It has the Swiss Alps backdrop, an obstacle in the heroine‘s disapproving family, boy-girl antagonism that becomes love, dramatic train scenes — pretty classic characteristics of the Bollywood romance.

ABSTRACT SPACE OF PUNJAB
Everyone has a mental idea about any culture or region. The idea or image associated with Punjab is that it‘s a place where the people are happy, open minded, casual & the geographical region is green. This image which is created in the minds of the people is due to the movies they watch. In the movies mostly the positive things & the distinctive character of Punjab is showcased. Its done in this way, so that people can easily relate with it. But what it leaves behind is an imprint in the minds of people which defines the abstract space of Punjab. What is not shown is the grim realities of certain parts of Punjab. This may be because the director doesn't want to show it due to the image or memories he has for Punjab( in this case Yash Chopra is himself a punjabi who left Punjab at an early age & in his mind only the good memories & images are left) or in fear that a film may loose its mass audience if it tries to portray the realities.

N.B.-This is a precise conclusion.
Credits to the various blogs and articles for statistics ,and information beneath.
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References 1.Times of India blog 2.HT blog 3.wikipedia