Let’s talk about Bollywood

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The Bollywood Connection

INDIA`S FILMS MIXING MELODRAMA AND MUSIC REACH ACROSS THE BORDERS TO SILICON VALLEY

By Lisa Tsering

Special to the Mercury News

You won`t find Bollywood on any map.

Bollywood is India`s huge, Hindi-language film industry, which produces more than 1,000 films a year. The word is a masala mix of Bombay and Hollywood, just as the films are a spicy blend of melodrama, romance, fights, patriotism and gorgeously choreographed musical numbers.

These days, the West has started to wake up to India`s film industry. ``Lagaan,`` a masala masterpiece about love, taxes and cricket, was nominated early this year for an Academy Award for best foreign film. (It was re-released May 31 in Bay Area theaters.)

Last year`s ``Moulin Rouge`` featured a glorious closing number based on the Hindi film song ``Chamma Chamma.`` Mira Nair`s current art-house hit, ``Monsoon Wedding,`` borrows liberally from the Bollywood songbook. In addition, ``Bombay Dreams,`` Andrew Lloyd Webber`s long-awaited stage collaboration with acclaimed film director Shekhar Kapur (``Elizabeth``) and Indian pop maestro A.R. Rahman, is scheduled to open June 19 in London.

In the Bay Area, with its large population of Indians and Indo-Americans, the roots of Bollywood run deep. As if to confirm its appeal here, 28-year-old screen superstar Hrithik Roshan -- dubbed by GQ as ``the most famous person you`ve never heard of`` -- will make his first Bay Area appearance tonight in ``Heartthrobs,`` a live, all-Bollywood dance spectacular, featuring five other Indian film stars (Karisma Kapoor, Kareena Kapoor, Arjun Rampal, Aaftab Shivdasani and Raageshwari) at the Network Associates Coliseum in Oakland.

Roshan became a star overnight with the 2000 release of ``Kaho Na Pyar Hai`` (``Tell Me You Love Me``). Described in a magazine story as ``a lithe, virile and very Indian version of Elvis Presley,`` he often co-stars with Kareena Kapoor, whose older sister Karisma is also a well-known actress and dancer.

Indeed, to be a star in India, you`ve got to be able to dance -- really dance -- to a heavenly mix of sitar, earthy Punjabi Bhangra folk music, tabla and shamelessly shrill violins behind lusty vocals, lip-synced by the actors.

Local moviegoers flock to see their stars at Fremont`s Naz 8 Cinemas, the nation`s first and biggest multiplex movie theater dedicated to Bollywood films. They also can go to the six-screen Indian Movie Center in Sunnyvale, which tends toward South Indian and edgier independent films produced by the Indian diaspora.

Not surprisingly, the Bollywood influence can be traced in the other direction as well. A whole genre of Bollywood films is popping up with story lines and characters straight out of Milpitas, and audiences in India can`t get enough.

``Silicon Valley is home to so many Indians,`` says Asha ``Revathy`` Menon, a director whose debut feature film, ``Mitr: My Friend`` (2001), focused on the culture conflicts of Indians settled in the valley.

``Just think -- in one out of 100 families in India, there`s at least one son, daughter or brother working here. Indians are definitely interested in the stories of immigrants settled in America,`` Menon said.

Dev Anand, a matinee idol-turned-director, sets a portion of his next film, ``Love at Times Square,`` in a high-tech firm here and even makes a cameo as an archetypal Silicon Valley millionaire.

For Indians in Silicon Valley, most of Bollywood`s lusciously garish movies offer a sense of familiarity that`s as soothing as kheer, the sweet, creamy rice pudding. The basic story line: Boy meets girl from a different religion or social class. They bicker and then fall madly in love. They profess their passion in a song, which may be sung in a Swiss meadow, a Rajasthani palace, atop a glacier, in front of the Great Pyramids of Giza.

Of course, boy and girl face complications: arranged marriage, mistaken identity or an ex-boyfriend, an automobile accident, a death in the family or threats by hired goons. Optional ingredients include a temple scene, an elaborate wedding with a cast of hundreds, a techno-disco club number or India`s national anthem. Three hours and six songs later, the lovers work things out.

Bollywood movies usually show a tidied-up picture of India. Director Yash Chopra, king of Bollywood romances, says his films are successful in the United States ``because they show a side of Indian culture that makes people proud to be Indian.``

According to Menon, the reason Indian-Americans prefer India-lite on-screen is simple: They`re caught in a time warp.

``They keep a picture of the India they left long back,`` she said. ``There are very big, important changes in India, but their perceptions have stagnated. They remember only the time that they left India.``

All this might make you think Bollywood movies are strictly for Indians and Indian-Americans. But the films` curvy heroines and he-man heroes are worshiped in Russia, China, Afghanistan, Egypt, Israel and Britain, too.

And the films` mainstream influence -- including recognition at major film festivals -- and the advent of high-quality, subtitled DVDs have raised the profile further. Now Bollywood and its stars are making a place for themselves in America, too.



San Jose Mercury

ABCD

`ABCD,` about an East Indian American family, is one of several ethnic films hoping for a wider appeal.

By JON MATSUMOTO, SPECIAL TO THE LOS ANGELES TIMES

When Krutin Patel co-wrote the script to his film ``ABCD`` in 1993, the most prominent East Indian in American pop culture was probably Apu from the television series ``The Simpsons.`` Eight years later, that animated convenience store clerk is still the most recognizably East Indian character in American television and film.

http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/printedition/calendar/la-000094888nov29.story

The paucity of East Indian American representation in the popular arts in this country is a primary reason why Patel feels so passionately about his independently made drama, which captures the intriguing dynamics of an East Indian American family.

``ABCD,`` which opens Friday at selected theaters, is one of a handful of new films involving rarely seen immigrant American characters and scenarios. ``The Debut,`` which is currently in theaters, and ``American Adobo,`` which is slated to open in Los Angeles on Jan. 23, are both small movies reflecting Philippine American life. A coming-of-age film about a Philippine American teenager, ``The Debut`` opened in Los Angeles in early October and has grossed more than $1 million. Home to large Philippine American populations, the Los Angeles and San Francisco areas have accounted for 90% of the film`s box-office success, according to its distributor, 5 Card Productions.

All three of these films deal in some way with ethnic minority immigrants and their children trying to reconcile traditional cultural values with very different American attitudes.

In ``ABCD,`` two grown children react differently to the expectations of their loving but very traditional Indian-born mother (Madhur Jaffrey). Older brother Raj (Faran Tahir) tries to conform to her wishes. He has a very respectable job as a Manhattan accountant and is engaged to a traditional Indian woman he does not entirely love. His younger sister Nina (Sheetal Sheth) rebels against conservative Indian mores by dating non-Indian men and by embracing a sexually promiscuous lifestyle.

Having emigrated from India to the U.S. at age 8, Patel is familiar with the difficulty of trying to straddle the line between two cultures. Like many men with Indian immigrant parents, he felt the pressure to land a white-collar job. To appease his parents` concerns about his desire to enter the uncertain field of filmmaking, he majored in both film and finance at New York University. While he hopes to transition into filmmaking full time, Patel currently works in the marketing department at the Food Network in New York.

Ironically, previous screenings of the film have indicated that ``ABCD`` is unlikely to be fully embraced by the Indian American community, particularly by that segment which espouses conservative cultural values.

``The strongest reaction to the film has come, believe it or not, from non-Indian Americans,`` remarks Patel, who also directed and co-produced ``ABCD.`` ``There are those in the Indian American community who don`t want to see its dirty laundry hung in public. The portrayal of characters like Nina [makes them uncomfortable]. They want to keep their heads in the sand. In the Indian community the film will raise a few eyebrows. That`s a good thing because there will be debate about it. We tend to be a community that doesn`t communicate in regard to some of these harder issues.``

Nina is the film`s most complex character. She rebels against the sexual conservatism of her ethnic culture. Yet her contrary ways also keep her from finding the emotional intimacy in her romantic relationships that will lead to happiness. When she finds herself falling in love with an Indian man she reluctantly meets on a date arranged by her mother, she is disinclined to commit to the relationship.

Patel says the Nina character has sparked much debate during question-and-answer sessions following screenings of the film. Some Indian Americans have found her to be an inaccurate representation of their people. Others have found her to be very real.

Patel recalls, ``One of my memories of showing this at a film festival was a British Indian girl telling me, `That`s my life up there on screen.` I was like, `Wow, thank you.` Nina really translated to her experience.``

``ABCD,`` whose relatively polished look belies its modest $200,000 budget, couldn`t have been made without the financial help of Patel`s friends and relatives.

``After my parents came to America, they helped other Indian immigrants who subsequently came to this country,`` explains Patel, who spent about five years raising money to make his film. ``Some 30 years later I needed financial backing and they turned around and gave me that help.`` Only a few of the Indian American investors asked to read the script.

Moviegoing is hugely popular in India. But Patel believes there would be little interest there in a serious-minded film about an Indian American family. Bollywood, as the Indian film industry is known, generally produces escapist melodramas.

The hope is that films like ``ABCD`` and ``American Adobo`` will find audiences among independent film lovers and in specific minority communities in the increasingly multiethnic U.S. Patel says there are sizable Indian populations in most major American cities. ``ABCD`` is slated to open in 15 to 20 markets in North America.

Non-Indian audiences may not fully understand a few of the cultural subtleties of the film and some viewers may not empathize with Raj`s possible encounter with workplace discrimination. But Patel feels he has fashioned a movie that has mainstream allure.

``I always wanted to make sure that the movie appealed beyond Indian people,`` Patel insists. ``As we started showing it at festivals so many people would say to me, `I`m not Indian, but so much of this film I can relate to my own family.` That`s when I realized that the film really has a universal appeal. My writing and directing style is going for a certain realism. If you make characters that are human and real they will transcend ethnic lines.``

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Read Wasim Akram instead of Wasim Malik in my last post.

After reading post #118, I decided to watch Hrithik Roshan`s movie, ``Kaho Na Pyar Hay``. It is a so-so movie, nothing spectacular about it. I think the so many Pakistani are liking this kid has to do with his resemblance with cricketer Wasim Malik during his earlier years. Hrithik Roshan does seem to carry the genes of his father and would not last long because of expected baldness in few years.

The best movie of the year so far is really ``Shaheed Udham Singh``. Not only you learn some real history of the Ghadar Party in Punjab but also enjoy the best dance of the year by Juhi Chawla. Thanks Juhi--you are still very pretty.

Indian movies that depict Pakistan as an ``Evil Empire``, is playing to a audiance in rural-india. Because thats where bollywood movies make most of their money. I really enjoy a movie where the main character is a non-hindu. These types of movies really push the social-tolerance envelope a little bit further. Thanks for letting me speak my mind.

Hrithik Roshan fever hits Pakistan too

``There is a great demand for him. Be it ladies or the men, all of them demand Roshan.``

Wednesday, March 29 (Karachi):

What has kept all political issues in the background and emerged with a sudden burst of energy in Karachi is the runaway Bollywood hit Kaho Na Pyar Hai. Starring Hrithik Roshan, the film has made him a superstar across the border as well. Video distributors in the Karachi city say that the film has been a complete hit and the sales have been tremendous.

There are several signs of the growing fan following of the film`s hero. Posters of Hrithik Roshan are plastered all over the place, Urdu film magazines are putting him on their cover, and cassettes of Kaho Na Pyar Hai are being sold faster than they can be stocked. A magazine seller said, ``There is a great demand for him. Be it ladies or the men, all of them demand Roshan.``

It is Hrithik`s dancing that seems to have struck a chord with the Pakistanis. Couples in the city have taken inspiration from the leading pair in the film and incorporated the same dance steps in their parties.

However, some still remain faithful to Sharukh Khan and Salman Khan, the nineties superstars. They say that Hrithik Roshan is new and his performance in subsequent films remains to be seen. For them, Shahrukh Khan is still the best.

Shankar: The movie industry in Pakistan was very pro-Z. A. Bhutto and his PPP during the seventies and Zia did not hated anything more than PPP supporters. Moreover it was a period of mediocrity of the movies and people were losing interest in the Urdu movies in particular. On top of that there was a mini-boom in the real estate market in the cities due to remittances from the Gulf States and many theatre owners found it more profitable to tore down the theatre on the prime real estate in the big cities and converted them to shopping centers and apartment complexes.

Pakistan movie industry never matched the success and quality of indian hindi movies except for the earlier years of independent Pakistan. Moreover, the society always looked at the people in the movies and music with disdain, almost as an outcast and termed them names like kanjars and mirasis. No entertainment or other industry can survive without the public support whose profit base is predominently domestic.

In the absence of any real competition, it is difficult to allow indian movies in the Pakistani theatres because it will cause a profit flow in one direction only. It is only possible if there is some sort of compensation worked out in a trade deal. In the current highly polarized environment, it will even be risky for the distributors and theatre owners to show indian movies. Lets hope for better and peaceful times.

Sameer JB

Many thanks for the reply.

Why did Zia ul Haq ruin the Pakistani film industry? As it has been pointed out, films can be a major foreign exchange earner, not to mention give honest employment to thousands. In addition, it brings India more goodwill abroad than any damn foreign policy initiative by the govt.

I think the greatest contribution that muslims have given to the Indian culture is in the field of arts--films included. The same pool of talent is available in Pakistan as well. Singers like Noor Jehan, Nusrat Fateh ali Khan & Junoon were enthusiastically recieved by Indians. It generates a lot of goodwill between our two countries. I am not sure of this, but is there a similar reciprocity on the part of Pakistan?

Is it legal for Pakistanis to watch Indian films on video? Or is the law in name only & such activities are allowed with a wink & a nod by the authorities?

Hopefully Clinton will force our leaders to start talking to each other. This stupidity has gone long enough. I think the public on both sides should pressure our respective leaders to lift the ban on films. Of course anti-Pak films like Pukar should be banned by Pakistan. The same can be done for anti-Indian films by India.

I`ll bet you if Indian producers eye the Pakistani market, they will think twice about making films like Pukar. The same can be said about Pakistani producers. India is a huge market & getting bigger still.

The bigger issue than films actually is free trade between our 2 countries. I am hoping that one day S.Asia will have a ``NAFTA``. This business of one market dominating another is pure nonsense. The US has a much bigger market & GDP than Canada. But is the latter suffering with NAFTA?

Ironic, but true---if the post cold war era has taught us anything; the best way to get people & countries together is pure capitalistic greed! :)

Shankar: It is probably not true that Pakistanis have more knowledge about Bollywood although they do have more knowledge about Urdu poetry. The Pakistani movie industry has been in disarray since the time of Zia Ulhaq and it has created a market for Indian movies on videos. They are easily accessable and affordable in the urban centers of Pakistan. Despite the current boom in the Indian economy due to liberalization and the IT industry, the city life in Pakistan is very comparable with major Indian cities, if not better due to the matters related to disproportionate income distribution as well as the past remittances from the middle-eastern countries. They can easily afford their evenings watching Indian movie.

The posts at this board, at least in my case, reflect information extraction from a number of websites, mostly for the sake of interacting. Most of the material about Roshan, Naushad and Noorjehan was lifted from other websites. Unlike most academic knowledge, only small portion of such information is actually reained in the memory, rest is out of sight--out of mind stuff.

My knowlege about Hindi movies is very limited, so this is the first time I ventured to this post.

What stuck me is the encyclopaedic knowledge that so many Pakistanis have about Hindi movies!!

I was under the impression that they have been banned in Pakistan for several decades now. Are all the Pakistanis who have opined here live outside Pakistan? You seem to know more about Indian movies than many Indians I know!

Maybe my comment is extermely naieve; well , but then I AM extremely naieve about such matters. I`m hoping some of my Pakistani bretheren would be kind enough to have the patience to educate me:)

Re: Sadhana #110

``blood-and-sweat second-in-command who may or may not want to marry his daughter/son into the hero/heroines` family``

How could I have missed that one! Good catch! This is again built for either Jeewan or Prem Chopra.

Re: Veeresh #111

``as they rank 10th or worse in a listing of other villains in Indian movies``

A clarification here... the list was roughly chronological and not at all not based on merit. I don`t want to offend Pakistani sentiments here, even with my tongue firmly planted in my cheek! :)

Sadhana: The song, ``tum agar mujhko na chaho to koi baat mahin....`` is from movie ``Dil Hi To Hai`` by Sahir/ Roshan combo whereas ``Rang aur noor ki baraat....`` is from movie ``Ghazal`` by Sahir/ Madan Mohan combo. It appears to be written for a failed lover who is accepting his defeat at the heroin`s wedding, typical of many movies.

Anyway, here is something about Sufism, from Sahir`s poetry.

When he talked about the fundamentals of sufism in...Barsaat Ki Raat / Roshan:

ishq aazaad hai, hindu na musalmaan hai ishq

aap hi dharm hai, aur aap hi imaan hai ishq

Allah aur Rasool ka farmaan ishq hai

yaani Hadees ishq hai, Quraan ishq hai

Gautam ka aur Maseeh ka armaan ishq hai

Ye qaaynaat jism hai, aur jaan ishq hai

ishq Sarmad, Ishq hi Mansoor hai

ishq Moosaa, Ishq Koh-e-toor hai

khaq ko but, aur but ko devtaa kartaa ishq

intehaa ye hai ke banday ko Khudaa kartaa hai ishq!

So now we have a fix on this vexatious problem, too, of Pakistani people as villians in Indian movies, it is quite clear by a jury of about a 100 people that even our villians are better than Pakistani people, another oxymoron, as they rank 10th or worse in a listing of other villians in Indian movies. To anybody who sees Indian movies, it should be as clear as khadi that our politicians are better villians than any other type.

Frankly, however, the Pakis can have our politicians, if they want them, I guess. Nawaz must be lonely?