TSR Bollywood Society

ye he is doing another film with Jhon as a producer but that's gonna be in 2013. For now I'm not gonna watch any films till my exam finish lol but after that i'm gonna try 2 films a week :P

rlly? so what would u recommend for a bollywood newbie? i wanna c something with aishwarya rai in it (just cuz we share the same name ) but i don't know alot of films that she's been in

Lol, I would recommend several of Aishwarya Rai's movies because she is such an amazing actress! Here are some you might like:

-Jodhaa Akbar
-Guru
-Kuch Naa Kaho
-Guzaarish
-Dhoom 2
-Devdas
-Robot
-Sarkar Raj
-Shabd
-Umrao Jaan
-Mohabbatein
-Taal
-Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam
-Aur Pyaar Ho Gaya
-Provoked (a Hollywood film)

To be honest, she only made it into the industry because she won Miss world or whatever. She's above average in terms of ability. The films that I have put in bold are the notable ones.

Just saw Jodhaa Akbar last week. It's a long film (3h 30) but every minute is of the length is justified. Great performance by Hrithik and breathtaking cinematography!

Satyajit Ray's 'The Chess Players' is a masterpiece. What a filmmaker! I wish we had more directors like him and Shekhar Kapur working in the industry at the current time.

Hold on... I don't understand how you don't like Kuch Naa Kaho, Guru, Dhoom 2, Mohabbatein and Umrao Jaan. As well as being great entertainers, they were all massive hits and gained many awards for Aishwarya Rai. She is a great actress and, as well as the films you put in bold, the ones you left out were also instrumental in cementing her position as one of the most successful actresses in India.

I haven't seen The Chess Players but it sounds like an intriguing story. If done well, it could be something that I grow to enjoy.

Hrithik Roshan is a great actor and highly capable of delivering many more hits in the future, but he seems to be moving away from films in which every song showcases his dancing talent. Since Krrish in 2006 we've only had Bawre (Luck By Chance) but that was just a guest appearance, and Senorita/Sooraj Ki Baahon Mein (Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara), but in the latter songs he was almost outdone by Farhan Akhtar and Abhay Deol. So those films don't count! I'm talking about the likes of Guzaarish, Jodhaa Akbar and Agneepath - where he didn't dance in a single song. IMO, a Hrithik Roshan film without dancing is only half a film!

Guru - good w/ a surprising performance delivered by Abhishek
Dhoom 2 - good
Umrao Jaan - bad as Aish was nowhere near Rekha
Kuch Naa Kaho - haven't really noticed it. Looks like a typical fare.

Aish just had a guest appearance in director Aditya Chopra's second venture after DDLJ, 'Mohobbatein', which I consider a good film purely because of the performances delivered by SRK and Amitabh. Other than SRK and Aamir, no actor could have matched Amitabh in those scenes. SRK really deserved the Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actor which he won. However, Jimmy Shergill and Jugal Hansraj overacted a little at times. Additionally, the film could have benefited from being trimmed by 20 minutes or so. An 8 out of 10 from me.

I came across 'The Chess Players' when I was looking to venture into 'art house' cinema. I'm looking to explore the work of director Shyam Benegal (of Zubeidaa fame). In particular, I'm keen on his 'Junoon' (1978) and Kalyug (1981).

I agree that a film w/o Hrithik dancing is only half a film However, I respect the fact that elaborate dance sequences are omitted due to the demands of the script, such as in 'Agneepath'. He is capable of winning many awards, I agree.

Interesting info:

Amitabh Bachchan, Nasseruddin Shah, Kamal Hassan, Sanjeev Kumar and Om Puri have won 3 National Film Awards each.

Ajay Devgan - 2 National Film Awards for performances in Mahesh Bhatt's Zakhm and Rajkumar Santoshi's 'The Legend of Bhagat Singh' (both great films)

Saif Ali Khan - 1 National Film Award for 'Hum Tum'. The only Khan who has won the award.

Here are some more questions directed at everyone on this thread:

-How do you usually watch Bollywood movies? By this I mean: do you watch them in a normal cinema with family/friends? Or watch them at home on DVD? Do you go to crazy multiplexes on premiere nights while on holiday in India/Dubai? Or do you get massively dressed up and go to the enormous cinema chains in your home city where crowds of people are cheering for the stars on screen?

The reason I ask is that I don't have any friends at university who are even remotely interested in Bollywood movies, so more often than not I end up going to watch them in the cinema on my own. When I'm at home during the holidays I watch them in the cinema with my mum or at home, where I have a massive collection of movies. Even then, my mum is the only person who watches Indian movies religiously like I do - no-one else in the family is interested. Have you had similar experiences or am I the only one whom this happens to?

-I have many friends from school and college who enjoy Bollywood movies, although I don't see them much any more (hence the above). Out of these friends, ~90% of them are girls... Is that representative enough for me to assume that Bollywood movies are generally more popular among girls than boys? I know many girls who aspire to lead the glamorous lifestyle of Bollywood actresses (particularly Aishwarya Rai and Priyanka Chopra) and get involved in modelling shows, but I've never met any guys who aspire to be like Hrithik Roshan or Salman Khan...?

-At my university, I'm part of 3 Bollywood and Bhangra dance groups. Now here you'd assume I would be meeting people who love Bollywood movies left, right and centre. But after completing 5 shows with the groups this year, I've asked around - and not a single person watches more than 1 Bollywood movie a year! I kid you not, these are the people with whom I've been doing full-on Bollywood dance routines all year - and I just can't understand for the life of me, why they like the dance but not watching the movies. Not even to observe some of the amazing dance routines we've seen in Bollywood movies over the years. I've asked around and the response is almost always the same: they've seen Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, Dil To Pagal Hai and Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge. And that's it - nothing else. Some of them have never heard of amazing movies like 3 Idiots, Agneepath, Singham, Dabangg or the Dhoom series. One girl asked me who Ranbir Kapoor is. Even the dance choreographers haven't seen anything since ZNMD, which is nearly 1 year old now. I've noticed it in the routines too - lots of our dance moves are recycled from one show to the next, because there's no continuity in keeping up with the current Bollywood trends. Is this appropriate, given that we have to keep improving our dance sequences?

-As well as watching movies, do you regularly attend Bollywood-themed events? I've been to dance shows, fashion shows, concerts and I go to the London Mela every summer. I'm interested to know some of the things you've all been involved in.

It's interesting to see that you follow the awards quite closely! I don't think I could ever be so critical of Bollywood movies as you are! I just love everything, and I find it really hard to dislike a movie.

I agree, Hrithik has been selecting films with scripts in which songs are not really appropriate. But while I feel his last few films have been amazing in their own ways, they just don't feel complete without songs in comparison to his previous ventures. We haven't had a film with a good range of entertaining songs since Krrish in 2006 - even at that point most of his success came from romantic movies such as Kaho Naa Pyaar Hai, Mujhse Dosti Karoge, Yaadein, Mein Prem Ki Deewani Hoon and Aap Mujhe Achche Lagne Lage.

I'm also interested in a few art-house films like you are. However, I think the problem is that some of those films may have much better execution (i.e. acting, story, direction) than many commercial films, but the art-house productions just don't receive enough publicity to do them justice. Plenty of times in the last few years I've missed great art-house movies because I didn't hear anything about them until they'd disappeared from the cinemas.

Here are some more questions directed at everyone on this thread:

-How do you usually watch Bollywood movies? By this I mean: do you watch them in a normal cinema with family/friends? Or watch them at home on DVD? Do you go to crazy multiplexes on premiere nights while on holiday in India/Dubai? Or do you get massively dressed up and go to the enormous cinema chains in your home city where crowds of people are cheering for the stars on screen?

The reason I ask is that I don't have any friends at university who are even remotely interested in Bollywood movies, so more often than not I end up going to watch them in the cinema on my own. When I'm at home during the holidays I watch them in the cinema with my mum or at home, where I have a massive collection of movies. Even then, my mum is the only person who watches Indian movies religiously like I do - no-one else in the family is interested. Have you had similar experiences or am I the only one whom this happens to?

-I have many friends from school and college who enjoy Bollywood movies, although I don't see them much any more (hence the above). Out of these friends, ~90% of them are girls... Is that representative enough for me to assume that Bollywood movies are generally more popular among girls than boys? I know many girls who aspire to lead the glamorous lifestyle of Bollywood actresses (particularly Aishwarya Rai and Priyanka Chopra) and get involved in modelling shows, but I've never met any guys who aspire to be like Hrithik Roshan or Salman Khan...?

-At my university, I'm part of 3 Bollywood and Bhangra dance groups. Now here you'd assume I would be meeting people who love Bollywood movies left, right and centre. But after completing 5 shows with the groups this year, I've asked around - and not a single person watches more than 1 Bollywood movie a year! I kid you not, these are the people with whom I've been doing full-on Bollywood dance routines all year - and I just can't understand for the life of me, why they like the dance but not watching the movies. Not even to observe some of the amazing dance routines we've seen in Bollywood movies over the years. I've asked around and the response is almost always the same: they've seen Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, Dil To Pagal Hai and Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge. And that's it - nothing else. Some of them have never heard of amazing movies like 3 Idiots, Agneepath, Singham, Dabangg or the Dhoom series. One girl asked me who Ranbir Kapoor is. Even the dance choreographers haven't seen anything since ZNMD, which is nearly 1 year old now. I've noticed it in the routines too - lots of our dance moves are recycled from one show to the next, because there's no continuity in keeping up with the current Bollywood trends. Is this appropriate, given that we have to keep improving our dance sequences?

-As well as watching movies, do you regularly attend Bollywood-themed events? I've been to dance shows, fashion shows, concerts and I go to the London Mela every summer. I'm interested to know some of the things you've all been involved in.

-Guzaarish
-Taal
-Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam
-Provoked (a Hollywood film)

Just saw Jodhaa Akbar last week. It's a long film (3h 30) but every minute is of the length is justified. Great performance by Hrithik and breathtaking cinematography!

rlly? so what would u recommend for a bollywood newbie? i wanna c something with aishwarya rai in it (just cuz we share the same name ) but i don't know alot of films that she's been in

Could not agree more - it's such a lovely movie. I loved all the clothes and everything as well <3
Hrithik was amazing in it... as a teen he used to be a skinny, nervous kid with a bad stammer and no confidence, and look where he is now - he's such a huge inspiration. And he's so beautiful. I think I love him. XD

So did I! Ashwariya's clothes and jewellery were absolutely amazing! Throughout the film I was sitting there thinking how I would love to be a mughal queen but then I thought when I get married I'll take some inspiration from what she was wearing

Answer to your first question: I actually do all off them.. go with family/friends, DVD's plus I go to cinema like every week unless there are no good films on. I love going to India and watching bollywood films especially in the multiplex cos u can just order your food from the seat and they bring it to you!

Everyone in my family loves bollywood films lol so i'm lucky here :P.. I know loads of people who haven't seen bollywood films but dance to it and its weird cos u can sometimes learn good stuff from their dance moves.
I haven't been to any bollywood themed parties so don't know much about that sorry.

You are exactly like me.. I love watching films whether be it Hollywood or Bollywood ( more towards bollywood )

Asif bhai (its also a well known name for the brother in many films ) i recommend you watch Kahaani .Its an awesome art house film and its in top 50 thrillers of all time on imdb at number 12. first bollywood movie to make it there.

I like the original movies and even the remakes have a nice asian twist to it making it spicier than the original.

ok for the questions..
i watch bollywood movies both on dvd and on cinema. The atmosphere of watching it in the cinema especially if its packed like for devdas or something is electrifying and you hear the funniest comments. It also makes an average movie look way better and a great movie look magnificant. Watching devdas and jodha akbar on cinema was awesome. I watched the odd bollywood movie overseas but not that many..and have never seen a premiere. they dont happen much here in Aus although parts of our uni got closed when they shot we are family there.

I have a couple of friends who are interested in Bollywood movies but def quite a few are not into it. If only we were in the same city i'd watch those bollywood movies with you.

Me and my siblings are massive bollywood buffs even if in the comfort of my own home..and i have many white or non-asian friends who listen to my bollywood songs while driving in my car. Even heaps of my white friends and non-asian collegues love bollywood movies because of their colour and vibrant nature. However, many asians feel inferior if they watch bollywood movies for some reason and so they prefer other types of movies..even if asian characters are rarely leads in non-asian movies or if they're used only for comedic relief, or the villain or what not. My family only watches bollywood movies so ive got company there and kids of family friends my age are interested in bollywood movies so ive watched with them but rarely my own friends. Have you found it the same with chidlren of family friends your age? like some of us grew up with andaz apna apna and all the jokes from the good old movies of the 90s.


I like bollywood movies and so do some male friends but i guess the romantic and emotional nature would make some guys hesitant to admit a liking unless if its action or clear cut comedy or an aamir khan film. buut as asians we are naturally emotional so why shy away from it. i know some guys who want to build muscle like Hrithik or Salman but girls def are more into the glamorous aspect..
Are there any indian societies or asian societies or bollywood socs or film socs? they might screen some bollywood movies and have some interested people.
That's awesome you're part of a dance group. i had to devise a dance performance for Ahun Ahun at a marriage anniversary and we had people of all uni age and it was a laugh riot. Are you sure they're being honest about their bollywood viewing habits because you know how its not cool to be too desi or watch too many bollywood movies? Apparently it makes you sound like a freshie and that's not desirable. I bet they have watched more then they let on.

I can't believe they havent watched 3 idiots or dabbang yet. You must make them see those movies..because watching the songs and the whole movie does help with dance performance. and if someone talks about the movie they're doing a song from and they havent watched it. then its going to look unusual or something.

we dont have many bollywood themes events here in Aus but i would go if i could. ive been to some concerts by well known bollywood singers though. sometimes i wish i lived in london *sigh* but then i think of the weather. jk lol

^ These ones are fab - especially Guzaarish, it's really really sad and I cried my eyes out, but it's just so good :')
And provoked is wow. I'm not an Ash fan, but I think she was wonderful in provoked.

Good suggestions asif, though I don't know how you manage to watch so many films along with doing a medical degree

Also - have you seen 'Shaitan'? If not, watch it, it's amazing.