I have always been a sucker for voiceovers in films and I think this primarily originated from my fascination with the voices of radio newsreaders of Akashvani when I used to listen to them as a kid. I feel voiceovers have an effect of almost as if the person whose voice we are hearing is telling the story as if he lived the story himself and thereby he understands it inside out and also as he very objectively narrates the story it makes us feel that he is speaking the absolute truth.
The first voiceover that ever caught my attention was from the film “Mackenna’s Gold”. I remember being mesmerized as the voiceover in the film transported me from a B-grade movie theatre in Ameerpet, Hyderabad to the exotic awe inspiring locales of Arizona.
Apart from the locales the feeling in the voiceover and the way the lines were spoken by the voice also puts you in an emotional context of the story.
Just remember that more than the lines, it is how they are spoken and with what emotion in the voice is what makes a voiceover work.
This is how the words go as a deep voice in “Mackenna’s Gold” narrates…
“A thousand years ago in the southwest there was an apache legend. It told about a hidden canyon guarded by the apache gods and rich with gold.
As long as the apaches kept the canyon a secret, never touched the gold they would remain strong, powerful.
That was the legend.
When the Spanish conquestadaros came they searched for the canyon. They called it the canyon del oro meaning the canyon of Gold. But they never found it.
300 years later the Americans came. They called it the lost Adam. That was because a man called Adams has once seen it or so he said. But whether he did or not he never saw anything again.
That was because the apaches have burned out his eyes.
Canyon del oro, the lost Adam, and then for a while back in 1874 it was called Mackenna’s Gold”.
Before it says “back in 1874” the voice actually takes a pause as if trying to recall the exact date and the con is complete. I completely believed by the end of it that I am watching a real story which happened to real people.
Another favourite of mine is the voiceover from the film “The Guns of Navarone” a 2nd World War based adventure film. It goes like this…
“Two thousand troops of the Allied forces were marooned on an island 6 miles to the south of Navarone. They were trying to send in shipments of food and arms to the trapped soldiers but these ships were being destroyed by 2 specially designed German guns situated on the island of Navarone.
The Allied Command put together a crack team of commandos to somehow sabotage and destroy those guns.
What happened in the next 6 days became the ‘Legend of Navarone’”.
After this voiceover the film starts with a super “The first day 06.00am”.
Yet another great voiceover comes in the beginning of “Conan The Barbarian” preceded with a quote from Thus Spake Zarathustra “That which does not kill us makes us stronger – Friedrich Nietzsche”.
After the above super seemingly 80 year old voice rambles on…
“Between the time when the oceans drank Atlantis and the rise of the sons of Aryas there was an age undreamed of.
Unto this came Conan destined to bear the jeweled crown of Aquilonia.
It is I, his chronicler, who alone can tell thee of his saga.
Let me tell you the days of high adventure”.
Now coming to poor Desi me, two of my most favourite voiceovers in my films are from “Satya” and “Company”.
In “Satya” a voiceover starts after the death of Amod Shukla the Police Commissioner.
“Amod Shukla ki din dahade hatya ne… Saari sarkari machinery ko jhad se hila ke rakh diya… Police badla lene par utaru thi… Voh jiss kadar samoche underworld pe toot padi… Jo khalbali machi… Jo shoot outs aur hungame hue… Voh Mumbai ke criminal ithihaas ka sab se kaala chapter kahi gayi… Taanav mein ghira Mumbai shehar, Police rajya lagne laga tha… Aur aane wale chunaav ne haalat aur bhi sangeen kar diya … Har waqt maujood khatre, khokle system aur nir uttar sarkar se logo ka vishwaas hat gayi… Jiss ka Bahu Thakur Das Jhavle ne bhar poor fayda uthaya… Jo gangster underground ho chuke the, unne dhoond nikal lene ka police ka juoon tha… Usska shikaar kuch nirdosh log bhi bane… Maanav adhikar sangato ne police atyachaar ke khilaaf pradarshan kiye… Aur band ki maang ki… Jisse police ne aakaran aur nir aadhar bataya… Lekin ant mein unhe peeche hatna padha… Aur issi dauraan chunaav bhi… jiss mein Bahu Thakur Das Jhavle bhari majority ke saath jeet gaya… esse mahul mein ek din Satya, Vidya ke saath film dekhne gaya…”
This above voiceover in “Satya” I basically ripped off from the tonal quality from a passage in the Godfather novel after Michael Corleone murders Solozzo and Mckluskey which goes likes this.
“The day after the murder of Mcluskey and Solozzo, Police Captains of New York sent out word that there will no more gambling, no more prostitution and no more deals of any kind until the murderer was given up. Massive raids began all over the place. All illegal activities came to a standstill.
An emissary from the other families met the Corleones and asked them if they were ready to give up the murderer. He was told that the matter does not concern them.
Later that night a bomb exploded in the long beach mall belonging to the Corleone family. Also that night 2 men of the Corleones were shot to death as they were peacefully eating their dinner in a small Italian restaurant in Greenwich village. The five families war of 1935 had begun”.
The beginning voiceover of “Company” was inspired by some random shots of Mumbai taken by my DOP to be plugged in at various places in the edit of the film.
When I saw the shots I was taken aback with the eagles which were by chance hovering on the buildings at the time of the shoot. They reminded me of the opening sequence of “Mackenna’s Gold”. I wanted a voiceover to support that visual and to pay a kind of homage to “Mackenna’s Gold”.
The initial lines went like this “Cheelon mein saber bahut hota hain. Woh ek ganta nahin ek din nahin….”
An assistant of mine pointed it out that it is not true of eagles. But since I was adamant about those lines being there, I just added “Cheelo ke baare mein yeh baat bahot kum log jaante hai ki unn mein saber bahut hota hai…” and I gave my assistant this logic that every guy in the theatre will think that may be he is among the few who does not know. Later after the film is over he would forget about the voiceover in the beginning. If he remembers and he likes the film he will think it is a metaphor and if he does not like the film it does not matter anyway. So the final lines went like this.
“Cheelo ke baare mein yeh baat bahot kum log jaante hai ki unn mein saber bahot hota hai… Shikaar pe nazar padne ke baad… Cheel ek ghanta Nahin… ek din Nahin… ek ek hafta… ek ek mahina… Dur aasman mein udti rehti hai… Jab tak ki sahi jagah aur sahi waqt na aajaye… Aur jab waqt aagaya… Toh palak jhapak ne se pehle shikaar jhapta gaya… Chahe voh poora shehar hi kyun na ho… Unn dino Mailk ka ek import export ka business tha… Magar sirf dikhawa… Asal mein voh aslam ali gang ka khaas tha… Ali se usski nazdikhi gang ke poorano ko khatakti thi… Nazdikhi ki wajah yeh thi ki mailk ne apni hoshiyari se gang ke dhande ko phelaya… itna ke bahut se naye logo ki bharti ki zaroorat padi… aur issi dauraan malik ki pehli mulakat hue Chandu se…”
In the context of “Rakta Charitra” as the story is happening in a certain specific region which the majority of the audience would not have any knowledge of, I wanted to have a voiceover to introduce the place and its context.
“Rakta Charitra” starts with the following voiceover.
“Mahatma Gandhi ne kaha tha ki bharat ki aatma gaavo me basti hai…iss mamle me ya to Gandhiji anjaan the ya phir masoom kyu ki aaj bhi iss desh ke kayi ilaake ek vibhats khooni sangarsh me uljhe hue hai…unme se ek jagah hai… Anantpur…jaha aham, aurat aur addhikar ki ladaayi me log jameen jaaydaad parivar aur apni jaan tak daanv pe laga dete hai…aur hinsa ka ye Rakt Chakra pusht dar pusht bina ruke chalta hee rehta hai Anantpur ke iss Raktranjit sangarsh me itne log mare hai ki Gandhiji ki bharat ki aatma… Ab yaha bas nahi…bhatak rahi hai… ANANTPUR KI YE CHARITRA, AAJ KI MAHABHARAT HAI… RAKTACHARITRA!”
All said and done I believe that voiceovers are great devices to create an effect of epic story telling and for whatever understanding I have of them I thank “Mackenna’s Gold”, “The Guns of Navarone”, “Conan the Barbarian” and of course our very own Akashvani.
The first voiceover that ever caught my attention was from the film “Mackenna’s Gold”. I remember being mesmerized as the voiceover in the film transported me from a B-grade movie theatre in Ameerpet, Hyderabad to the exotic awe inspiring locales of Arizona.
Apart from the locales the feeling in the voiceover and the way the lines were spoken by the voice also puts you in an emotional context of the story.
Just remember that more than the lines, it is how they are spoken and with what emotion in the voice is what makes a voiceover work.
This is how the words go as a deep voice in “Mackenna’s Gold” narrates…
“A thousand years ago in the southwest there was an apache legend. It told about a hidden canyon guarded by the apache gods and rich with gold.
As long as the apaches kept the canyon a secret, never touched the gold they would remain strong, powerful.
That was the legend.
When the Spanish conquestadaros came they searched for the canyon. They called it the canyon del oro meaning the canyon of Gold. But they never found it.
300 years later the Americans came. They called it the lost Adam. That was because a man called Adams has once seen it or so he said. But whether he did or not he never saw anything again.
That was because the apaches have burned out his eyes.
Canyon del oro, the lost Adam, and then for a while back in 1874 it was called Mackenna’s Gold”.
Before it says “back in 1874” the voice actually takes a pause as if trying to recall the exact date and the con is complete. I completely believed by the end of it that I am watching a real story which happened to real people.
Another favourite of mine is the voiceover from the film “The Guns of Navarone” a 2nd World War based adventure film. It goes like this…
“Two thousand troops of the Allied forces were marooned on an island 6 miles to the south of Navarone. They were trying to send in shipments of food and arms to the trapped soldiers but these ships were being destroyed by 2 specially designed German guns situated on the island of Navarone.
The Allied Command put together a crack team of commandos to somehow sabotage and destroy those guns.
What happened in the next 6 days became the ‘Legend of Navarone’”.
After this voiceover the film starts with a super “The first day 06.00am”.
Yet another great voiceover comes in the beginning of “Conan The Barbarian” preceded with a quote from Thus Spake Zarathustra “That which does not kill us makes us stronger – Friedrich Nietzsche”.
After the above super seemingly 80 year old voice rambles on…
“Between the time when the oceans drank Atlantis and the rise of the sons of Aryas there was an age undreamed of.
Unto this came Conan destined to bear the jeweled crown of Aquilonia.
It is I, his chronicler, who alone can tell thee of his saga.
Let me tell you the days of high adventure”.
Now coming to poor Desi me, two of my most favourite voiceovers in my films are from “Satya” and “Company”.
In “Satya” a voiceover starts after the death of Amod Shukla the Police Commissioner.
“Amod Shukla ki din dahade hatya ne… Saari sarkari machinery ko jhad se hila ke rakh diya… Police badla lene par utaru thi… Voh jiss kadar samoche underworld pe toot padi… Jo khalbali machi… Jo shoot outs aur hungame hue… Voh Mumbai ke criminal ithihaas ka sab se kaala chapter kahi gayi… Taanav mein ghira Mumbai shehar, Police rajya lagne laga tha… Aur aane wale chunaav ne haalat aur bhi sangeen kar diya … Har waqt maujood khatre, khokle system aur nir uttar sarkar se logo ka vishwaas hat gayi… Jiss ka Bahu Thakur Das Jhavle ne bhar poor fayda uthaya… Jo gangster underground ho chuke the, unne dhoond nikal lene ka police ka juoon tha… Usska shikaar kuch nirdosh log bhi bane… Maanav adhikar sangato ne police atyachaar ke khilaaf pradarshan kiye… Aur band ki maang ki… Jisse police ne aakaran aur nir aadhar bataya… Lekin ant mein unhe peeche hatna padha… Aur issi dauraan chunaav bhi… jiss mein Bahu Thakur Das Jhavle bhari majority ke saath jeet gaya… esse mahul mein ek din Satya, Vidya ke saath film dekhne gaya…”
This above voiceover in “Satya” I basically ripped off from the tonal quality from a passage in the Godfather novel after Michael Corleone murders Solozzo and Mckluskey which goes likes this.
“The day after the murder of Mcluskey and Solozzo, Police Captains of New York sent out word that there will no more gambling, no more prostitution and no more deals of any kind until the murderer was given up. Massive raids began all over the place. All illegal activities came to a standstill.
An emissary from the other families met the Corleones and asked them if they were ready to give up the murderer. He was told that the matter does not concern them.
Later that night a bomb exploded in the long beach mall belonging to the Corleone family. Also that night 2 men of the Corleones were shot to death as they were peacefully eating their dinner in a small Italian restaurant in Greenwich village. The five families war of 1935 had begun”.
The beginning voiceover of “Company” was inspired by some random shots of Mumbai taken by my DOP to be plugged in at various places in the edit of the film.
When I saw the shots I was taken aback with the eagles which were by chance hovering on the buildings at the time of the shoot. They reminded me of the opening sequence of “Mackenna’s Gold”. I wanted a voiceover to support that visual and to pay a kind of homage to “Mackenna’s Gold”.
The initial lines went like this “Cheelon mein saber bahut hota hain. Woh ek ganta nahin ek din nahin….”
An assistant of mine pointed it out that it is not true of eagles. But since I was adamant about those lines being there, I just added “Cheelo ke baare mein yeh baat bahot kum log jaante hai ki unn mein saber bahut hota hai…” and I gave my assistant this logic that every guy in the theatre will think that may be he is among the few who does not know. Later after the film is over he would forget about the voiceover in the beginning. If he remembers and he likes the film he will think it is a metaphor and if he does not like the film it does not matter anyway. So the final lines went like this.
“Cheelo ke baare mein yeh baat bahot kum log jaante hai ki unn mein saber bahot hota hai… Shikaar pe nazar padne ke baad… Cheel ek ghanta Nahin… ek din Nahin… ek ek hafta… ek ek mahina… Dur aasman mein udti rehti hai… Jab tak ki sahi jagah aur sahi waqt na aajaye… Aur jab waqt aagaya… Toh palak jhapak ne se pehle shikaar jhapta gaya… Chahe voh poora shehar hi kyun na ho… Unn dino Mailk ka ek import export ka business tha… Magar sirf dikhawa… Asal mein voh aslam ali gang ka khaas tha… Ali se usski nazdikhi gang ke poorano ko khatakti thi… Nazdikhi ki wajah yeh thi ki mailk ne apni hoshiyari se gang ke dhande ko phelaya… itna ke bahut se naye logo ki bharti ki zaroorat padi… aur issi dauraan malik ki pehli mulakat hue Chandu se…”
In the context of “Rakta Charitra” as the story is happening in a certain specific region which the majority of the audience would not have any knowledge of, I wanted to have a voiceover to introduce the place and its context.
“Rakta Charitra” starts with the following voiceover.
“Mahatma Gandhi ne kaha tha ki bharat ki aatma gaavo me basti hai…iss mamle me ya to Gandhiji anjaan the ya phir masoom kyu ki aaj bhi iss desh ke kayi ilaake ek vibhats khooni sangarsh me uljhe hue hai…unme se ek jagah hai… Anantpur…jaha aham, aurat aur addhikar ki ladaayi me log jameen jaaydaad parivar aur apni jaan tak daanv pe laga dete hai…aur hinsa ka ye Rakt Chakra pusht dar pusht bina ruke chalta hee rehta hai Anantpur ke iss Raktranjit sangarsh me itne log mare hai ki Gandhiji ki bharat ki aatma… Ab yaha bas nahi…bhatak rahi hai… ANANTPUR KI YE CHARITRA, AAJ KI MAHABHARAT HAI… RAKTACHARITRA!”
All said and done I believe that voiceovers are great devices to create an effect of epic story telling and for whatever understanding I have of them I thank “Mackenna’s Gold”, “The Guns of Navarone”, “Conan the Barbarian” and of course our very own Akashvani.