Bollywood Movies

Bollywood movies are very popular for the “Romance” portrayed in their plot. Romance in Bollywood has evolved throughout the ages. But the one thing, that has remained constant are the unofficial and official ban on any depiction that may suggest something which is not a part of the “Indian” culture. Westernization was always shown as something negative and alien. Let’s have a closer look at how Hindi cinema deals with this censorship code that has been set up. Bollywood adopted a new way to recreate the same passion that usually a ‘kiss’ would generate; they substitute these by song and dance routines.

Songs are basically a description of the passionate seen with no suggestive visual imagery to aid it. It’s left to the audiences’ interpretation. Even though there is no written ban against “kissing” scenes in Hindi cinema, it is believed that acts of passion are something which is done privately and not publicly. Displaying a kissing scene would be on-screen would be considered too public. However, the lip movement while singing the songs, can also be related to the lip movement when the act of kissing takes place, and the lyrics and the emphatic music, creates the same mood, with minimal physical suggestivity.

India’s ancient tradition describes women to be the gender that represents the nation. It has been assumed that they uphold the culture and traditions that adorn this country, and by depicting them in flashy outfits and in sexual passionate scene is equivalent to demeaning the nation and its respected “tradition”.

You may notice that in Hindi cinema the female protagonist is always shown to be naïve and innocent, whilst it is not always the case with the men. The other women who are shown Westernized are clear...

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... of the Indian culture. However, the industry is still not as fair as it could be to women, by keeping them as the ones who depict virtue and morality on-screen. During themed 20th century, the movies were more conservative and you could say that Bollywood was trying to perpetuate the image of a conservative India. One in which they believed acts of love were too be only privately displayed. Additionally, they created a social commentary where the message given out puts women into a situation where they need to live up to some idealistic qualities, put forth by men. Even though, the Bollywood films are fictious, they still give you an idea of the social pressure that the female gender goes through. Lastly, prohibition on films should be stricter with real vulgarity that is these days being portrayed on-screen, rather than focusing on the small display of affection.