On a Bollywood high!

Renowned author Lord Meghnad Desai who often comes down to India to promote his books and meet his friends is in the city to talk about his latest literary offering, The Rediscovery of India.

Desai, also an economist, is passionate about Bollywood and is a huge fan of veteran actor Dilip Kumar. While a book on the history of Indian cinema is on hold, Desai reveals that his publishers have recently commissioned him to pen an exclusive work on
Kamal Amrohi’s film, Pakeezah. He says, “I will be writing extensively about the film, in terms of its cultural references, the tragedy of Meena Kumari and the film’s other nuances.”

Being a part of the India diaspora in London, watching Bollywood films is a part of Desai’s schedule. However, the author cautions that unlike the Chinese film industry, Bollywood commands only a niche audience in UK. He explains, “Unlike Chinese films, Bollywood has not really captured the non-diaspora audience in London. During recession, a lot of people decided not to buy tickets to watch Hindi movies but just settled at home to make-do with DVDs. Bollywood in UK is stuck in its desi idiom.”

Though the author is a part of India’s contemporary glory, her history never ceases to amaze him. However, certain strands of global incidents that affect the Indian sentiment have also been one of his prime concerns. He has an interesting take on the
recent attacks on Indians in Australia. “I have a hunch,” he says, “that the  attacks on Indians have nothing to do with racism; blame it on cricket. It is all about that controversial test match between India and Australia and the Harbhajan incident. That can be the only plausible explanation.”