Planet Bollywood

David Chute has a fascinating article on Bollywood movies in the current L.A. Weekly. He touches on a number of familiar Reason themes, including the dynamic relationship between local culture and globalization. But the piece is most interesting as a close reading of the films, their fans, their immense popularity in much of the world, and their converse failure thus far to catch on in mainstream America.

Comments

[The Tortured Artist]

I got hooked on Bollywood musicals while working in the Silicon Valley - there was a local 30 minute show that while purporting to provide reviews of the latest releases was really just an excuse to play the snappiest production numbers.

My wife recently borrowed a video from one of her Indian co-workers. We sat through 3.5 hours of horrible acting, strange singing, a transparent plot, and absolutely loved every minute of it. We're still singing the songs months later.