Bollywood

Bollywood dreams come to life
Susumu Arai / Yomiuri Shimbun Correspondent

MUMBAI--More and more people have been taking tours of Mumbai's film industry, known worldwide as Bollywood.

India produces more films--nearly 1,000 a year in more than 20 languages--than any other country, including the United States. Its works have also been breaking box-office records, further insuring the country's place in the international film market.

The Hindi film industry is dominated by Mumbai.

On a recent visit to the northern part of that city, I went to Film City Mumbai. My visit to the area was arranged by Vikram Productions Pvt. Ltd., a film production company and Bollywood tour organizer.

The studio complex stands on a two-square-kilometer lot located in a national park and is covered in hills and foliage.

Driving over a hill on the lot, I came in view of filming locations and sets: a castle, a luxurious mansion, a Hindi temple...

Further down the hill, I could see a row of studios that resembled huge warehouses as massive heavy machinery was building more studios nearby.

Film City Mumbai was set up in 1977 by the government of Maharashtra State, where the studio complex is located. It has been used for its location sites and state-of-the-art studios, all for reasonable prices, further serving to increase Mumbai's renown as a center of the film industry.

Film studios, offices and residences belonging to popular actors can be found south of the facility.

At the foot of a bridge, I saw a crew of about 50 shooting a scene in which the lead character narrowly escapes being pummeled by his enemy.

"My film is a traditional one, filled with singing, dancing and action," said director Amit Chauhan, 30. "Movie theaters are packed, so we've got to get the movie out as soon as possible."

Participants in the six-to-seven-hour tour visit, among other places, locations for 2009's "Slumdog Millionaire," which took home the Academy Award for Best Picture and seven other Oscars. The tour also visits a recording studio and the residences of popular movie stars.

Shah Rukh Khan, 44, one of Bollywood's most popular actors, lives in a luxurious residential area near the coast.

His house, designated a historical building, is not visible from outside as it is enclosed within a nearly four-meter-high fence. Behind the area is a modern low-rise office and studio building.

According to a security guard, the actor was not home that day. Apparently, when he is in Mumbai, dozens of his fans wait at the entrance of his abode in the hope of getting a glimpse of him.

Participants in Bollywood tours are mainly from the West and include many non-Indians.

When the production company began hosting tours 2-1/2 years ago, it attracted only about 10 people a month. The number has since increased to about 40.

Following on that success, another company began providing a similar tour.

While the number of Japanese film enthusiasts participating in the tours is still quite low, Noriaki Koga, 33, manager of the Delhi branch of major travel company H.I.S. Co., said: "The Japanese are getting more and more interested in India. Bollywood tours exclusively for Japanese travelers may be a worthwhile investment in the future."

At the heart of the tours' popularity is Bollywood's international success.

According to several Indian newspapers, "3 Idiots," starring popular actor Aamir Khan, earned box-office sales of 3.15 billion rupees (approximately 6.3 billion yen) in the first 18 days since its release late last year, setting a new record for Indian films.

"My Name Is Khan," starring Shah Rukh Khan, has earned more than 1 billion rupees (2 billion yen) overseas since its release in February. It is likely to set a new foreign box-office record for Bollywood.

Bollywood's success is backed by India's strong economy. The country's gross domestic product is expected to see 7.2 percent growth in fiscal 2009.

In large cities such as Mumbai and Delhi, more and more movie theaters are being built. In addition, there has been growth in the middle-class, which can afford to buy movie tickets, which cost 50 to 200 rupees (100 yen to 400 yen).

The success of "Slumdog Millionaire" also helped attract the attention of the U.S. cinema industry to its Indian counterpart and accelerated its involvement in Bollywood.

According to industry insiders, U.S. filmmakers have been producing more films with their Indian counterparts and obtaining the rights to distribute them overseas.

Indian film critic Anupama Chopra says there is a new type of Indian film emerging, such as "My Name Is Khan," which diverges from the traditional Bollywood production style with its extravagant singing and dancing numbers.

(Apr. 11, 2010)extracted from Daily Yomiuri