Oh gosh, I can not review any movies with out screen caps anymore. My blog post seems so naked without it. Therefore, I am going to just talk nonsense in this blog post. So hopefully I won't bore anyone with no pictures to showcase.
Since I'm Hmong, a non-desi, I thought about countries around the world that watches Bollywood films. But Hmong people don't have a country!!! Regardless I thought this would be a fun post and for me to have some nostalgia moments.
I do see that some Bollywood stars have more fan base outside of India than India, itself sometimes. What do I mean by that? Well, for example: Dino Morea is not a very popular Bollywood star in India. Sure he has some hit movies, mainly not due to his acting but due to the star cast of the film. However, he's more popular and well-known in European countries, particularly Italy (maybe cause he's half Italian) and Germany.
I thought about Bollywood movies that are dubbed in Thai and Hmong. Most of the time, the films that are chosen to be dub are consistent with the star cast -- seeing a familiar face. When I was younger, my parents used to watch Dharmendra, Hema Malini, and Rajesh Khanna films. That's how I got into Bollywood films. I fell in love with the music and romantic storylines.
When I got into the double digits - 10 years old -- I started to watch more Bollywood movies with the same star cast. 80s stars - Kumar Gaurav, Poonam Dhillon, Padmini Kolhapure, Govinda, Chunky Pandey, Neelam, Rishi Kapoor.....
I remember going to the Indian store to request more Govinda movies. The store owner suggested I watch some Amitabh Bachchan movies. My mom was like "what? Who's that?" and later said to me, "he's the most popular guy in India??" She was shocked because she's never seen any of his movies. Hmong people are quite shallow human beings. What I mean by that is if there isn't a good looking star cast, then forget it. They don't want to watch the film. No wonder I get this mentality of I have to watch some hot guys on screen, lol.
Since I was a legal teenager (doesn't that sound funny?), my parents' love for Bollywood films have faded. But I still made my mom go to the Indian store to rent me movies. They just don't have enough patience to watch anymore non-dub Bollywood films in Hmong and/or Thai.
So I started learning more about Bollywood and branching out and reading on other stars. Stardust was the only available magazine at the time so it was my only source. Reading about "hit" movies introduced me to Aashiqui and Maine Pyar Kiya helped me get started to see new faces in Bollywood. Since then, I've stopped watching dub Bollywood films. Most of the times, I would end up watching the movies without subs. I didn't care. I just needed my fix of Bollywood.
Wow, I rambled on! Now since my brain has so much more knowledge of Indian cinema, at times I do cringe at Hmong people just watching the dub versions. Or don't branch out and watch more stars. Some stay strictly with only Shahrukh, Kajol, or even Rani movies.<
To get back on track, I find the following stars more loveable in the Hmong/Thai/Lao/Khmer community since I've seen dub film versions of their filmography -- Esha Deol, Amisha Patel, Kareena Kapoor. Wow, I'm listing the ladies only. I've seen mostly Shahrukh, Salman, Aamir, Hrithik movies that are dubbed.
Sorry if I blabbed on too long. I was bored at work
5 comments:
It's easy to get attached to stars when they're dubbed in a language in you understand and/or you grew up with them. I started watching Bolly movies with Indian friends when I was in middle school, and since I grew up with English and German, they figured it'd be a kick to put on a movie that included German dubbing. (Of course, they had already seen the film, so they knew what was going on.) It was--by coincidence--an Amitabh Bachchan film, Don. So I have a particular fondness for Big B as a result!
Another coincidence: my grandparents wouldn't watch most things unless the people spoke German, could be dubbed in German, or the media included German subtitles. Nevermind that they spoke perfect English, they just didn't want to be bothered with it! =P
I'm a very open-minded person, however, which I think is the French side of me popping out, so I'll try all kinds of movies with a variety of stars. But like everybody else, I have my favorites!
And there's no shame in watching a movie just cause it has John Abraham in it. I don't usually go for men, especially not model-esque men, but damn, he's pretty!
Thanks the bolly list for telling me about how you got started. As a non-desi, I always find it interesting how other non-desi got interested in Bollywood.
Yes, I think you're a very open-minded person! You're going to be multi-languagial (is that even a word??). You have English, German, French, Hindi, and now Korean languages you're into. Dang, you go girl!!
As for John Abraham, how can you say that??? Didn't you show me your metrosexual Japanese man? Now, he's more prettier than John. :P Even though John is a model, I don't find him pretty. He's got that raunchy, sexy, bad-boy look to him - it's the stubs, I tell you!
Haha! Thanks! I actually don't speak French; my oldest French relatives speak German and Draconian French, thanks to the Franco-Prussian war, and they're still IN France, anyway. Sometimes my younger cousins will call me blathering in French, and I'm like, "OMFG SPEAK ENGLISH!" My Hindi is abyssmal. But I'll get there some day!
John Abraham is just too modelly for me to be sexually attracted to him. I don't find Gackt (my metro Japanese guy) sexy either; very beautiful, but not sexy. It's like I always say about certain actors/models/singers/etcetera: once you reach a certain level of pretty perfection, I stop finding you attractive and I just want to take your picture! LOL! When it comes to sexiness, I tend to prefer the earthier, more "every day" look, like Manoj Bajpai, SRK, Kajol, Tabu...none of them are OMFG GORGEOUS, and they're physically flawed, and I love that!
And it doesn't hurt that I'm 95% gay, either, so men don't often push my buttons. =P
Now I really wanna watch more dubbed Bollywood. I tend to hate dubbed movies because they look ridiculous, but it'll bring back my childhood. =)
the bolly list - you're so silly!
I can understand. My parents speak Thai, Lao, and French too but I don't speak that - only Hmong and English.
Shoot, I love my model men, hehehe. I know your love for Manoj Bajpai already.
Hahaha, I have my girl crushes too but I also like the modelly types too. That's sad cause I don't even look like one either! Maybe because I want to look like that, I love it!
You're absolutely right!! I hate watching dub Bollywood films too but they do bring back childhood memories.
That is an almighty BUTT TON of languages. O_o
Like I said, I love to look at the modelly types (photographer and all that jazz), but they stop being sexy to me when they reach a certain level of PRETTY.
My dad was watching "The Drunken Master," dubbed, tonight and I almost cried. God, dubbing always looks so stupid. XD
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