Bollywood in Little Rock

My new friend Meera invited me to attend my first Bollywood movie this week. The film arrived Monday night from India and was screened to an audience of around one hundred I am guessing. I have heard of these movies and seen clips of them in the past, but this was my first experience at viewing an entire film. Since it blended the genres of comedy, martial arts, musicals, and drama (especially focusing in on social issues in India), I wanted to analyze its appeal to the audience. It is not hard to understand why it is popular.

The film Sivaji featured a somewhat aging lead actor paired with a comedic partner and a young, beautiful actress as a love interest. A "formula" film, it showed Sivaji in elaborate musical production numbers with many dancers and singers. In addition, the martial arts sequences were just as elaborate and choreographed, especially the one that took place in a music shop when drums were bonging and cymbals were clanging. The comedy was physical, showing Sivaji dancing wildly around the bathroom after eating a plate of hot peppers and later scratching himself unmercifully after applying various remedies to supposedly lighten his skin. The drama was also affecting as Sivaji rolled down his luxury car window to hand money over to a young woman and her child begging on the streets of India.

Even though the film was not sub-titled in English, I could follow the plot without difficulty. Why does such a film appeal to the wildly cheering audience? I believe it is because Sivaji represents the dreams of all of us. Who has not longed to leave the life of a bus conductor, for example, to become a movie star and producer like Sivaji? Who has not yearned to be rich and to marry the most desirable spouse in the world? Who has not wanted to be seen as the life of the party with a fantastic sense of humor? Who has not wanted to look out into the world and help those who struggle to obtain basic services such as health care? Who has not longed to be a hero, who with his strength and vigor, is able to defeat a bevy of opponents?

Like our American films of Rambo or Rocky, we long to escape for a couple of hours from our own world of reality to imagine we are far more than we ever will become. It is for this reason I believe that these films will continue to attract large audiences in both India and America.