Why I Love Bollywood Movies So Much!

As some of you know, my husband and I are in the process of adopting a child from India.  (It has been over a year now and the waiting is getting really tiresome!)  Anyway, I thought that if I was going to raise an Indian child, I should become familiar with his/her culture.  This is why I started watching Bollywood (short for "Bombay Hollywood") movies in the first place.  As it turns out, I fell in love with the genre!  

Why do I love these movies so much?  Well, in American films, we seem to have lost the idea that movies should include a big song and dance number.  Bollywood movies are chock full of them!  It reminds me of when movies were made in a more wholesome time like when Fred Astair and Ginger Rogers graced the screen.  Indian movies are not allowed to show kissing, so they show couple dancing together to show the love between them.  Did you know that a dance can actually be more sensual than a kiss?  Also, showing longing gazes is actually more powerful than showing a couple slobbering all over each other.  Don't take my word for it, see for yourself!  I love the outrageous costumes, dance moves, ethnic music, all of it!  Sure they can be cheesy, but sometimes you just gotta have a bit of cheese in your life, right?  

My favorite Bollywood movie of all time (and probably my favorite movie period!) is Kal Ho Naa Ho.

This is where I saw my true love, Shahrukh Khan for the first time.  I'm totally gaga over him!  I have never gone coo-coo for a movie star the way I have over this guy.  I never liked Brad Pitt (too pretty), or Tom Cruise (too crazy), or Jude Law (too pervy), or Leo Dicaprio (too....I don't know).  I like Shahrukh because he is just so much fun to watch!  He totally throws his whole body into the dance moves and he looks like he just LOVES every minute.

Shahrukh is smart too.  He knows what he is doing.  He made the following statement in response to the cheesiness of some of his dance numbers:  "I make movies that must appeal to both the 5-year-old child and the 90-year-old grandma".  (...and the 30-something American, apparently!)  He is the biggest movie star in the world if you go by the number of fans he has.  He is not only the biggest star in India, but also in all of Asia.  (I have so much competition.....sigh...)  A self-made man from humble beginnings, Shahrukh now owns his own studio.  He doesn't like the term "Bollywood" because, as he says, "If you are David to someone's Goliath, it is better to be called 'David'.  Not 'Boliath'." 

If you want to see what I'm talking about, here are my favorite Bollywood movies.  (These days, you can Netflix them!)

Lyn's Bollyood Picks:
1.  Kal Ho Naa Ho (Tomorrow May Never Come) - My fav!
2.  Rab ne Bana Di Jodi (A Match Made By God) - Super sweet.  You'll love the Surinder Sani character.
3.  Om Shanti Om - Pure marshmallow fluff for the eyes!
4.  Veer-Zaara - a beautiful love story which shows a bit of the problems between India and Pakistan.
4.  Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (Something Happens) - a much-loved Indian classic.

Check them out!
BTW - Bollywood movies are longer than the ones we're used to.  They can be 3 or more hours.  This is because their songs are longer (usually 6 minutes) and they usually have 5 or 6 songs per movie.  All I can say is, it's time well spent!

Here are some pictures of when I dragged my poor husband to Madame Tussaud's in London (this past July) just so I could see a wax copy of my hero.  My hubby thinks I'm nuts!  I am lucky to have a guy who is cool with all of this.  Of course, he has a Michelle Pfeiffer thing so he can't say too much.  (BTW - I have lost 30 pounds since these pictures were taken.)