What a difference a year makes: happy Bollyversary to me!

If you're reading this, I probably don't need to explain to you how Bollywood can change your life - and not only the selfhelpish ways, either, although there are a few of those. But I'm going to list some anyway - these sorts of occasions being time for reflection and all.

I won't lie to you: Bollywood takes resources. I stay up far past my
bedtime at least once a week, often more, engaged in filmi
fun. I have spent at least $100 buying DVDs (which is just a
drop in the bucket of potential purchases, to be sure), easily $50 on
renting (love the deal of 100 movies for $100 at my store), another
$40 on a ticket to a live stage show coming up in April,
and at least $100 in books (those pretty pictures will run you).
I am out of space on my DVD shelf. I feel like an empty nester
when I have lent out too many of my movies, and I worry
about how to ask borrowers to please give them back before
I lose my mind, lost in a panic of really needing to see KKHH
and not being able to. My list of books to read has grown
to an unmanageable size, not only because I have added
several books on Bollywood and India to the list but also
because my evenigns and weekends have a new activity assigned
to them. My knitting is mostly balled up in my basket and a
sewing project has been derailed, because I can't be crafty
while watching subtitles (previous to BW I listened to a lot more
tv than I actually watched). I've bruised myself after bumping into
furniture while dancing in my living room.

But on the up side...where to start? Apart from the truly great fun
of the movies themselves while watching - which for me includes
cackling out lout, yelling at the screen, rewinding and
halting to confirm delightful subtitling or heinous clothing - I
really have become a better person for watching. I know this
is a weird claim to make, but I'm pretty sure it's true. I have gotten
so much more in touch with the part of myself that longs to be
wholehearted. I am more convinced than ever that it really is good
for you to fling here and there. And there's the whole intellectual side, trying to learn how to engage with different cultural traditions and conventions of telling stories.

And of course there's the people! I know I said this at Thanksgiving, but it's more and more fun every day.

It's interesting. It's funny. It's lovingly romantic. It's affectionate. It's colorful. It's rich. It's superwow.

Comments

Anonymous said…
all the best to your bollyversary - the mine (especially the bollyblogging one) will also come soon. and its interesting how we all think and feel the same, you in the us, me in germany (but you've more sellers in the states, in germany we've to buy mostly in the us which means waiting, waiting and waiting *gg)

stay on blogging, may your keyboard never loose any button and ...make this song available :D

michael
Obi Wan said…
I can so totally relate to everything you have written. I've never been prouder of Bollywood, and the impact it can have on the lives of people, in so many delightful ways!
May the Force be with you.
t-HYPE said…
Okay. I haven't seen the film but I'm like, Kunal Kapoor is SO dreamy in the stills I've seen from the film. The beird makes him look a little like Jesus but so be it!
Well, thank you too! Your blog was a really cool find for me. I used to come here and read it till one day I had to say something! The thanks thing works both ways.:)

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