Beth Loves Bollywood

I have seen 3.5 Bollywood films. Three of them have had the same person in them, and two of those have had an additional principal in common. Is this statistically usual? Or does the person who develops the collection of my local video store, That's Rentertainment (the best video store ever, by the way), suffer from some serious crushes?

Abby and I watched Chalte Chalte on Monday. V enjoyable but not as catchy to me as Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, although I appreciate its representation of the tribulations of maintaining a relationship past the happy glow stage. Or, as I said to Abby, "That's what happens when you marry someone you've only known for 24 hours."

Bride and Prejudice finally came to Champaign this weekend so we rushed right out to see it. Thoroughly charming and enjoyable. None of my clothing is appealing to me anymore - I want embroidered cottony tops and fun flipflops. In London. And an elephant.

Watching Taal will just have to do.

"It's shamelessly in love with its own garishness and will embrace any style, any music segueway, no matter how cheap or corny, if it's delightful. This is what so much American pop misses nowadays. If it's cheap or corny, it's safe and sentimental, not crazy and out-of-bounds. And if it's crazy and out-of-bounds, it's too angry or too cool to be playful.... [It's] sly and goofy dance music."

I am addicted, clearly.

In preparation for Bride and Prejudice, I am introducing myself to Bollywood. And what a magical place! Abby and I were completely enchanted by Mujhse Dosti Karoge and on Kevin's recommendation I am in the middle of Kuch Kuch Hota Hai - which as it turns out is the top of the top ten list from bollywhat.com that I had printed out and taken to Retertainment a few weeks ago. As he handed me his un-subtitled copy, he said he thought I could follow it since the storyline was visual enough. Well, maybe I can when I'm not under the influence of Sudafed, but yesterday I certainly couldn't. What I missed was that most of what has happened so far is in fact a flashback. Ah. However, no amount of drugs could obscure the fact that the leading man in this is a ham extraordinaire who is too full of himself to be remotely worthy of the attentions of the heroines. Goodness.

What I really want is to find a Bollywood dance class.