Wilson, J. M. (2014) Revising national/diasporic imaginaries: Bollywood & diasporic Indian cinema and globalization. Paper presented to: International Conference on Diasporic Indian Cinemas and Bollywood on the Diaspora: Re-Imagings and Re-Possessions, University of Osmania, Hyderabad, India, 2014-01-22.
| Item Type: | Conference or Workshop Item (Paper) |
|---|---|
| Abstract: | As Diasporic Indian Cinema/Bollywood is one of the key cultural sites for the production of the national imaginary, this paper will focus on reconstructions of its aesthetics, narratives and ideologies following the country’s economic liberalization policies of the 1990s. These will be contextualized in relation to India’s globalized economy, new promotional aids to production, financing, marketing and distribution of Diasporic Indian/Bollywood cinema, diaspora audiences, and new media technologies. With reference to the genre of the family melodrama, and performances of NRI- dominated Indian identities, the paper will argue that ideologies of gender, class, and religion have been inflected by a transnational Hindutva modernism and capitalist consumerism in this blockbuster cinema. These are identifiable with the apolitical globalization that informs neoliberal Bollywood’s success, ignores social realities, and builds on the fan base of superstars like Shah Ruch Khan. Finally the paper considers the contrived ‘authentic Indianness’ of Bollywood/ Diasporic Indian Cinema’s ideologically normative, hegemonising narratives that move between cultural hybridities and purities, with reference to its critical reception in the diaspora (i.e. ‘Bollyworld’). How do the national/ transnational cultural identities and values of a reframed Hindu national identity inform diasporic imaginaries of India as the original homeland in the new media landscapes where plural, hybridised identity structures are in constant (re)formation? Reference will be made to films such as Meera Nair’s Monsoon Wedding (2001) Aditya Chopra’s Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge (The True of Heart Will Win the Bride, 1995), Karan Johar’s Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham (Sometimes Happiness, Sometimes Sadness, 2001), and Gauri Shinde’s English/Vinglish (2013). |
| Creators: | Wilson, Janet M |
| Faculties, Divisions and Institutes: |
Faculties > Faculty of Education & Humanities > English and Creative Writing Research Centres > Centre for Critical and Creative Writing |
| Date: | 22 January 2014 |
| Date Type: | Publication |
| Journal or Publication Title: | International Conference on Diasporic Indian Cinemas and Bollywood on the Diaspora: Re-Imagings and Re-Possessions |
| Event Title: | International Conference on Diasporic Indian Cinemas and Bollywood on the Diaspora: Re-Imagings and Re-Possessions |
| Event Dates: | 2014-01-22 |
| Event Location: | University of Osmania, Hyderabad, India |
| Event Type: | Other |
| Language: | English |
| Status: | Published / Disseminated |
| Refereed: | No |
| URI: | http://nectar.northampton.ac.uk/id/eprint/11281 |
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