Sunday, February 8, 2009

Need a smell dimension

It is high time that we add another dimension to our film viewing. Films already engage our sense of sight and sound. Why not smell? Won't it feel wonderful to view films with this added dimension?

Imagine watching Slumdog Millionaire or even Dev.D with the smell dimension included. 

Consider Dev.D for that matter. Smell of hay when a mattress is laid down in the fields. Smell of Punjabi dishes at the wedding feast. Lovely perfumes at the reception.  Smell of Ariel when Paro washes Dev's clothes! An obnoxious smell when Dev throws up etc.

Wonder why this has not become a reality.

It will not be practical to have the entire auditorium throw up different fragrances depending on the scene being flashed. There could be a lot of people who are allergic to smell and would prefer to be excused from such experiences.  We need a different solution.

I have seen stamps which retain smell of sandalwood, roses etc even after a year. I have also seen desktop calendar’s which smell of roses etc depending on the picture in the calendar. So it is definitely possible to build long term fragrances into objects.

Personally, I would prefer a device which could be carried in and out of an auditorium. I should be able to either connect it a port on my seat or could be controlled like any other wi-fi device. I should be able to increase/decrease the intensity of the smell being thrown out and it should not disturb any of my neighbors who may not want to enjoy this experience. 

Obviously, I would want to switch it off whenever not required.  Who would want to experience the smell of Dev’s room and ultimately volunteer to clean it up for him!

Hope it becomes realty before I become too old to experience it. We can only get it when we start asking for it.

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