The New Slick Bollywood

So this post is mainly about the new slick bollywood but I do have an update on the "Church of Oprah" posting. I got a email from a man who has apparently adopted the title "King of the Crazies;" the text is about 4,000 pages long saying that Oprah will be the downfall of the world. He's actually used his church listserv to encourage his congregation to boycott the talk show because she appears to endorse universalism. He also manages to throw in as a kind of PS that we should boycott Barak Obama too because he supports same-sex marriage (go BARAK!), and I particularly love the way that he blended the two completely irrelevant topics into one nice big purple (yep - purple) rant. Sometimes I wonder if he knew I am as afraid of paranoid lunatics like him as he is of "liberals." I shudder.

At any rate, what I signed on to talk about was a new bollywood flick I watched last night. (I wrote a "Bollywood Guide for the Unintiated" that I put on myspace; I may repost it here.) The show is called "Race" and fits into a new category of Bollywood films that seem to cater to the Western appetite for stop-action shooting, blowing up cars, special effects, and lots of guys in sunglasses. It's about two brothers who are always in competition (in a "race") for everything: money, success, a girl -- and at the end, their lives. It features Saif Ali Khan -- who holds a special place in my heart as he's one of the first Bollywood actors I ever saw in Salaam Namaste, which is the film I recommend everyone start with if they're interested -- and a couple of new actresses named Katrina Kaif (from a flick called Welcome you should try out) and Bipasha Basu (or Bip) (from one of my favorite movies called Dhoom 2). There are as many twists and turns as there are in a junior high girl's diary. I highly recommend it.

The way I got "Race" is unusual. I went to an Asian Grocery in Memphis not too long ago and discovered a treasure trove -- this place sells $2, brand-new, still-in-theater Bollywood movies. Race was one of them, as was Jodhaa Akbar, Holla Bol, Black and White, and Saawariya (the first American, Sony-made Bollywood flick). More to come on those films as I find a spare 4 hours to watch each one. Anyone looking for an adventure should definitely go to the Asian Grocery, which boasts a small cafe in the back with homemade Dhosas and Pani Puri as well as a market FULL of affordable Indian spices, rices, breads, and even serving dishes.

That's it before the weekend begins. Andrew and I are headed to a local gigantic flea market to see what fun is to be had in a warehouse full of junk. Wish us happy hunting.