++ [ originally posted by baggio ] ++
Oh of course, that recieved a lot of flak especially in the late 80s and early 90s. Those movies were made purely for the sake of raking in money. They were tacky, had no artistic verve and were fairly whimsical in their story telling. Now, however times have changed.
Earlier, you'd be surprised Erik, you'd walk in to a disc or sit in a friend's car and you'd laugh or look down upon someone listening to bollywood hindi music. Today, that music is simply awesome. Foot tapping numbers that are screaming themselves hoarse from the turn tables of djs across India and those abroad. As well as from the cars of every tom, dick and harry. As for the movies themselves, there are still some that stick to the tried and tested family melodrama routine, but definitely in a more stylised, contemporary setting, something that even an international audience would react to. And then there's a large chunk of reality cinema filtering through, thats hard hitting and very diverse in its treatment. Both schools of thought I must say, have a distinct appeal.
And of course, that has gone a long way in promoting Bollywood to near iconic status on the global stage. Trust me, the colour, the hype, the glitz, the glamour is unparalleled in the world that recognizes this cinema.
If you're open to it, I'll even recommend a couple of movies; Black and Sarkar. I think these are two movies that define the spectrum of movie making in India, fairly well.