Bollywood

Bollywood is the Indian Hindi-language film industry located in Mumbai. Known for their colorful performances of singing and dancing, Bollywood is a prominent part of India's music scene. The main influences of Bollywood include ancient Sanskrit dramas, traditional folk theater, and Hollywood, California. Just as Western movies have changed throughout the years, so have Bollywood films. The very first Bollywood film, a silent film, called "Raja Harischandra," was released in 1913. Since then, approximately 1000 movies a year have been produced. Below is a trailer for "Chennai Express," released in 2013.




Similar to Hollywood, thousands of aspiring actors flock to the area each year hoping to catch a break in the industry. There is one aspect that is drastically different than Hollywood: very few non-Indian actors are able to succeed. Whereas Hollywood thrives from diversity, Bollywood tends to prefer 'the norm.' As difficult as it is for non-Indian actors to survive, one recent exception is Alice Patten, an Englishwoman. Some popular Bollywood stars include Shah Rukh Khan, Kareena Kapoor, Akshay Kumar, and Deepika Padukone.

(Kapoor)
(Khan)
(Patten)

Though most Bollywood films are musicals, there are also masala films, which include a mix of everything including romance, comedy, and action. Bollywood films also tend to be melodramatic, that is, love triangles, menacing villains, and convenient coincidences, are all frequent themes.


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