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Proof Bollywood culture has gone mainstream

Last Friday's Toronto Star front page story about Oakville resident Chantelle Swanson's radio-arranged marriage confirmed two things for me. No. 1: the world must have been pretty boring last Thursday. No. 2: Bollywood culture has become trendier than tapered jeans. Over the course of seven weeks, Swanson took part in a New Zealand radio station's reality show, Three Strangers and a Wedding. The 26-year-old middle school teacher, now based in Auckland, spoke to two potential husbands over the phone, met with their friends, quizzed their families and finally picked one as her lifelong mate. I spend more time deciding on a pricey pair of runners. While Chantelle's family has publicly expressed their disapproval, mine has officially picked their White North American of the year. "Beta, look at the divorce rates in this country. If you marry based on love, love will fizzle and your marriage will die" my Pakistani aunt has made a habit of telling me (I keep suggest...

Bollywood's run for the Oscars

Last week three of the country’s most revered entertainers celebrated their birthday. While the oldest and the most exuberant of the trio, Dev Anand, got extensively written about throughout the week (thanks to the release of his autobiography and his personal extroversion that invites public participation) the other reclusive icon Lata Mangeshkar who turned 79 last week (the age kept varying in various media reports) got her full day of extolment in various forms and formats. When you are the jewel of the ‘croon’ you can be as captivating in your in your work as you are in person. Sadly the third of the three showbiz icons last week who got completely left behind was Yash Chopra. His birthday is sandwiched between Dev Saab and Lataji’s on September 27. And it was a very special birthday. The doyen of Indian cinema turned 75 last week. It was a grand occasion, and one that should’ve been feted in style. Unfortunately we were all busy fighting other battles on behalf of and against peop...

Bengal eyes Bollywood film shoots market

Saif Ali Khan-starrer Parineeta has had a lasting impact on West Bengal tourism minister Manabendra Mukherjee's mind. Enthralled by the shots of tea gardens and Howrah Bridge, trams and Durga puja in the film, the minister said the tourism department was committed to develop the state as a film shooting destinations for Bollywood films. North Bengal, Darjeeling, Sunderbans, Bishnupur and Murshidabad are some of the places which the minister thinks will be good locations to shoot Bollywood films. With this view, the state is actively participating in a two-day festival called Cinemascope, in Mumbai ending October 26. The state will be the “silver partner” in the festival, jointly organised by an organistion comprising leading film producers and directors in Mumbai. The department has also produced a film to hardsell the state as a shooting destination. Also on cards is use of a Bengali film star as a brand ambassador for the state. “The star can be either a local one, or some ...

NSW eyes Bollywood audiences for tourism

India's film industry is one of the biggest, most profitable in the world, and recently it has been using Australia as a location for some of its features. The potential that represents for promoting Australia as a holiday destination has been recognised by the New South Wales Government. It has launched a tourist campaign on the back of the release of Bollywood's Hey Baby, and is hoping to lure Indian movie-goers Down Under. "We think it's really, really important," said Matt Brown, the NSW Tourism Minister. "People do relate to iconic things such as the Opera House, the Harbour Bridge, Bondi Beach. So to be able to see that - see people enjoying themselves, interacting around these icons - really will have a powerful impact, we think, with the Indian audience." Hey Baby is the first Bollywood film to feature an Australian location that is central to the entire film. The Indian bachelors in the story live in Sydney. Anupam Sharma is a producer who handl...

Bollywood turns to comedy to tackle AIDS awareness

MUMBAI, Oct 3 (Reuters Life!) - A Bollywood director is using comedy to raise awareness about HIV/AIDS in India, a country that has the world's third highest caseload living with the virus. "Everybody comes to the theatre for entertainment and hates when someone gets preachy through a film," said director Prabhakar Shukla of the film "Anamika". "I wanted to use comedy to lighten the tone of my subject which is a very serious one," he said. "My film is about relationships, about love and courage." The recent box office success of films with more serious subjects such as relationships, riots and terrorist attacks has prompted Bollywood to break away from its standard song-and-dance-romance formula. India, where about 2.5 million people are infected, has made few films on HIV/AIDS, including "Phir Milenge" (We Will Meet Again) and the acclaimed "My Brother Nikhil". Discrimination against AIDS patients is predominant in India ...

Rajesh Khanna-Hema's Mercedes in OM SHANTI OM!

A lot of ground work had to be done for Farah Khan's OM SHANTI OM, before the film actually went on the floors. In fact, for an important scene/song of the film, the first half of which is based in the psychedelic 70's, Farah wanted a particular vintage car. As per Farah herself, she was looking for the Mercedes that was actually used by Bollywood's first superstar Rajesh Khanna and the then 'dream girl', Hema Malini, for one of their super hit films. After lot difficulties, the current owner of the flaming red Mercedes was located and it took quite a bit of persuasion to convince the possessive owner to let the vintage car be used for the film. A lot of yesteryear equipments (lying unattended in R K Studios), were also hired and the scene was canned, with a complete feel of the 70's trend. Well, we can tell Farah that her efforts are being appreciated in the promos of the 'Agar Main Kahoon' song, and the real beauty, the Merc, stands out, as King Khan o...

SRK gifts K-Jo type hampers

Shah Rukh Khan has presented special gift hampers to the 40 Bollywood actors who have been a part of his home production, Om Shanti Om. It is said that he personally chose special items to be packed in this gift basket that resembled the gift hamper that Karan Johar gives on his television show, Koffee with Karan. Niloufer Qureshi from Om Shanti Om confirmed the news saying, "It is true that Shah Rukh designed a special basket which included the latest Nokia handset, a Tag Heuer watch, a gold coin, Om Shanti Om CDs, T-shirts and a personal letter signed by director Farah Khan and him. He gave them the hampers on the eve of the music launch of his film." A source close to the superstar revealed, "SRK had personally requested most of the 40 stars (including filmmakers like Subhash Ghai, Rakesh Roshan) to play themselves in Om Shanti Om. Since they obliged and did not even charge a single penny for their services, a grateful SRK decided to repay them with a special memento....