Bollywood is a global brand – cut the cultural apartheid 

When we re helines heralding Indian actresses dazzling at Cannes – annual film festival on French Riviera,  subtext doesn’t say y are mostly re to promote shampoos, t India’s powerful film industry. We have, by w, got used to silly dresses in general and interviews to captive Indian media in particular. Indian tent is just that – a tent. Most people who go re are Indians in search of Indian food. This year India decided to profile regional films.  body cares. If a film is good, region is irrelevant.  

But, something interesting happened this year. Director Rohena Gera’s feature film Sir, was t only acclaimed in a critic’s category, it has t stopped drawing huge crowds around world. Even more interesting is fact that Indian delegation led by Information and Brocasting Ministry was unaware that Sir h caught attention of Cannes’ discerning audience up until a few days of festival’s beginning.  

Even as I write this, comes news that a Bollywood label is set to replace “PewDiePie” – king of YouTube. Data over weekend is pointing towards India’s biggest music company T-Series becoming new boss.  More than 500 million Indians are online and this is only beginning and it has been ding new subscribers faster than Swedish star it has dethroned. , t all of it can be explained away by saying re are more Indians in world – it is time to look at our film and entertainment industry as a growing business.  

In 2017, Bollywood grossed in region of $2.1 billion and has been growing in excess of 10% each year at box office in country. Aamir Khan’s Dangal grossed $164 million within 45 days of its release in China. Consulting guru KPMG estimates that Indian recorded music business will reach $300 million in annual revenue. That is four percent of $7.65 billion that US recorded film industry alone earned last year (September 2017 estimate).  

Bollywood is a global brand. re is corner in world where films, music and actors’ names are t kwn. It’s obviously a revenue-spinner. It is entirely indigeus, ir st productions are top of rung (re Wizcraft) and y showcase India in all its colour and glory, diversity and ambition.

y have got re on ir own, as risk-takers and disrupters without making thirty-p power-point presentations. y don’t run around looking for government funding and doles. Most of m raise ir own cash – in or words, y are businesspeople. And, this homegrown industry is a massive job creator.

Oh, but wait. It’s t intellectual eugh. Which is why when international investors and governments come to India, top dogs of our film and entertainment industry are t invited to high table. y are called to “entertain” our guests – and that is perfectly rmal – but business is t where y are profiled.  

When Indian politicians travel abro looking for investments, y do t drive business towards our film, music and entertainment industry. re is a lot of nsense that Bollywood produces but formula films may be giving way to different identities and depth.  

In an interaction with Republic’s digital team last week, a quick tour de table showed that Indians were interested in consuming quality entertainment information. Young India is neir stupid r sluggish and will go find interesting work where it exists. We fall overboard when orchestras play Hindi film music when our leers visit foreign countries, but in our own country, we keep m at arm's length.

It is time to cut this cultural aparid.