The films certainly do reflect what's happening in the society. But they reflect the desires and the hopes, the values and traditions. They depict the dreams of the society. Yes, cinema has the power to inspire its audience but if it only reflects the wants or the needs of the audience it caters to is questionable, because neither is our society about Slumdog Millionaire nor does it posses the dubious riches of “Hum Aapke Hai Kaun”.
Only a few films have really depicted real issues in the past few years; for example Vishal Bhardwaj's "Maqbool" (2003), about the mafia in Bombay, or Anurag Kashyap's Black Friday (2004) about the Bombay blasts and communal rioting in the city between Hindus and Muslims. Although it was praised by the critics, it was shown in very few cinemas in India.
