Monday, February 4th, 2008
sorry to lower the tone, but i couldn’t resist
Via Sepia Mutiny, I couldn’t help linking to this (video below).
There is a serious point though. Given the increasing purchasing power of the Indian middle class, both in India and in the diaspora, and the fact that almost all songs are voiced over, is it unrealistic to think that in the not too distant future Bollywood will feature a significant number of caucasian actors and actresses?
I appreciate that there is a strong Bollywood tradition of indigenous actors and actresses and people like Shahrukh Khan and Aishwariya Rai are huge stars. However given the general Indian obsession with fair skin and blonde hair, the fact that Bollywood is becoming more explicit and the increasing impact of American culture on India, I don’t think that this is that outlandish.
Carrying on with this thought I do think that it is more likely too see western actresses being wooed by Amir Khan rather than Bipasha Basu being serenaded by Tom Cruise. Having said that, given that Brett Lee is almost certain to get leading Bollywood parts when he retires, maybe this isn’t that implausible.
Anyways, without further delay watch this and weep.
February 5th, 2008 at 2:16 pm
Atomsmashin said:
but do you think the first stage will be more paks?
it seems the indian music scene is coming close to being dominated by pakistanis, which is certainly a unusual occurance.
i think ultimately, the prob is that movies tend to illustrate their own millieu and thats hard to do if you are relying chiefly on imported actors?
February 6th, 2008 at 1:24 am
al-tahafut said:
haha, brilliant! reminds me of all those tv shows dubbed in hindi on star tv and sony back in the 90s - small wonder, dennis the menace.
but on the topic, i guess it depends on what sorts of roles europeans/americans get in bollywood films. i mean, ewan mcgregor as a coolie might not be a good idea [johnny depp, however, i'd give a shot]. but if they’re stories set in the US or europe or something, it might make sense. then again, what does bollywood have to do with making sense?