100 Things I Love About Bollywood

As I conclude this special week of Bollywood appreciation, I hope you've enjoyed reading the articles as much I enjoyed writing them. Indeed, thinking about all the awesomeness of Hindi cinema brought back so many good memories from all the films I've seen. So I hope you're ready for more, because I'm about to unleash a listapalooza with 100 Things I Love About Bollywood:

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10 Must-See Bollywood Films

India is known for having the most prolific film industry, producing upwards of 1,000 new films every year. This staggering figure is attributed to various regional production centers within the country, but ask most persons around the world and they'll tell you that Bollywood represents Indian cinema. This Bombay-based industry has grown from strength to strength over the years and now, it offers a platform for a diverse range of voices. From small arthouse films to big blockbusters, comedy to drama, and everything in between, there's something to suit every taste.

Indeed, it's impossible to run out of good Bollywood films to watch, which can be both a daunting and exciting prospect (especially for newbies). To get you started however, I highly recommend this sampler of 10 Must-See Bollywood Films:

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10 Spectacular Bollywood Song-and-Dance Scenes

When most people think of Bollywood, the first thing that comes to mind is surely the song-and-dance numbers, and for good reason. Since the start of the Hindi film industry, the musical has been an essential component of popular cinema. Bollywood filmmakers take pride in staging the most lavish spectacles they can envision and thus, skilled choreographers, composers, songwriters, art directors, singers and costume designers are always in high demand. Indeed, musical numbers have become so important that Bollywood invented the "item number". While other cinema traditions promote a tight focus on the central narrative, Indian audiences have become appreciative of these musical interludes, which are often completely unrelated to the plot and feature actors who aren't part of the film. For the most part though, the musical numbers follow the same narrative purpose as the Hollywood musicals we're used to, just bigger and brighter.

These vibrant scenes are truly one of the best aspects of Hindi cinema. It's therefore more pleasure to present my list of 10 Spectacular Bollywood Song-and-Dance Scenes:

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10 of Bollywood's Hottest Stars

In our era of heavily branded franchise filmmaking in Hollywood, celebrity obsession is at an all-time high and the same applies to Bollywood, where they take fandom to a whole other level. As we unfortunately found out earlier this year, not even manslaughter charges can deter the diehard support. The simple fact is that movie stars are the lifeblood of Bollywood, no matter how hard the directors and writers are trying to change that. It doesn't seem likely to change anytime soon either, with the advent of the "100 Crore Club" (referring to box office grosses of 100 crore or more) driving competition between actors to get butts in seats. This elite status offers an enticing pay-off, as it ensures further high-profile acting gigs, increased earnings and the adoration of some of the world's most devoted cinephiles.

Below are some of the actors we can't get enough of, all of whom have lead multiple films to the 100 Crore Club. I present to you 10 of Bollywood's Hottest Stars:

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10 Awesome Bollywood Soundtracks

The close relationship between Bollywood and music can be traced back to the genre's earliest days. As the template for this new artform was being developed, filmmakers looked to the established traditions of Indian theatre, as well as the popular Hollywood musicals of the time. But while American audiences turned away from the lavish musical by the end of the 60s, Bollywood audiences couldn't get enough of the song-and-dance driven spectacle. Now many years after Bollywood's Golden Age (roughly the 1940s to 1960s), the musical is thriving and composers and playback singers (actors very rarely sing the songs) have become as popular as the movie stars. Soundtracks are now a key component of film marketing, generating buzz through the release of songs and item numbers (essentially a music video specifically created for marketing purposes). By the time the film is released then, the songs are therefore already dominating the pop charts. It's a method that works and for fans like myself, a good soundtrack can enhance the most mediocre of films.

With that in mind, I decided to highlight some of the best music Bollywood has given us over the years, with my list of 10 Awesome Bollywood Soundtracks:

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Announcing...Bollywood Week!

If you've been following the site lately, you'll have noticed that it's been quite heavy on Bollywood films. Indeed, I caught the Bollywood bug this summer, re-kindling a love affair that began 10 years ago when I started college in the US. It was then that my closest friends (most of them being South Asians) introduced me to a whole new world of cinema unlike anything I'd seen before. During this time I watched films like "Hum Tum", "Kal Ho Naa Ho" and "Jab We Met", which sparked my fascination with this unique style of filmmaking. Since then, time constraints haven't allowed me to keep up with Bollywood as much as I would have liked (these films tend to be more than 150 minutes long!) but its always held a special place in my heart. So this summer I decided to marathon some of the classics I'd missed, in anticipation of the project I'm announcing now. For your reading pleasure, this week will be Bollywood Appreciation Week here at Film Actually, where I'll celebrate the best of Bollywood.

But first, here's a brief introduction to Bollywood for the newbies...

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