My Love Affair With Bollywood

My love of movies started as a child in Central Texas. My late father was a big movie buff, and the two of us spent many Saturdays at the local cinema. There were numerous times over the years that the two of us would find ourselves glued to the TV, watching a movie together.

As I became older, I became very disillusioned with American cinema. (The truth be told, I’m a bit conservative.) The plotlines and emphasis on special effects just didn’t do anything for me. Maybe my age was beginning to tell on me, but it seemed that movies in the U.S. were being geared for a specific demographic – 18 to 34 year old males. And I certainly didn’t fit in that group. So what’s a 58 year old married woman living in Granbury,Texas to do?

One night, a couple of years ago, I was channel surfing, and stopped on one of the satellite movie channels. My TV screen was filled up with color, singing and dancing. Having a background in piano and singing, I found myself drawn to watching this program. The movie was Marigold. (Now I know it didn’t do well in India, but it has a “cult following” here.)

Marigold introduced me to the talented and charismatic Salman Khan. And Holy Toledo! Can he dance! Having a degree in History, I love to research.  I read so much about him I thought my eyeballs were going to fall out on my desk. I proceeded to watch his movies, and thank god for English subtitles!

Thanks to a New York friend who is into Hindi Cinema, NetFlix, Amazon, ebay, & Eros Entertainment, I’ve seen 42 of his movies and 22 of my other favorite “Bollywood” actor, Ajay Devgan. I’ve also viewed some of the works of Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan, Hrithik Roshan, Emraan Hashmi and Akshay Kumar. Of the ladies, I enjoy Kajol, Kareena and Karisma Kapoor, Rani Mukerji, Vidya Balan and Kangna Ranaut. (After watching Om Shanti Om I found myself humming the theme for about a week. I caught myself walking down an aisle at the local Wal-Mart, singing Om Shanti Om! I got some strange looks from my fellow shoppers.) The soundtracks of some movies make great workout music for me, such as my personal favorites, London Dreams and Singham.

Now that brings me back to why I like Bollywood films.  Firstly, I enjoy many of the plots and the acting talents of stars (Now I’ve seen some “stinkers” that I haven’t cared for, and some acting that hasn’t impressed me, but those things have been in the minority). Secondly, I enjoy the music and dancing. (You don’t see much dancing in American films, not since Dirty Dancing.) And finally, they make me lose myself for a couple of hours or more, to be “plain” (as we say over here) entertained.

Thank you, Bollywood, for entertaining this ole Texas gal!

Marinelle Kesinger Szenasy has a B.A. degree in History & English from Stephen F. Austin State University. She resides in Granbury, Texas with her husband, Randy, and pet beagles.