Saif has changed everything!

Saif has changed everything!
Wednesday, April 12, 2006 17:22 IST
By Santa Banta News Network
There are no songs, no glitzy dance routines and all the dialogue is in English, but Bollywood's latest offering, about a dysfunctional Parsi family, has defied convention by becoming a box-office hit.

The world's largest film industry by output and ticket sales draws its strength from the country's Hindi-speaking heartland, but these days it is also reaching out to the country's growing middle classes in its fast-modernising towns.

Filmmakers are already experimenting with bold themes like sex and relationships. Some have even ditched the megawatt song and dance routines which have been the staple of Indian cinema.

Being Cyrus, starring one of India's hottest stars, Saif Ali Khan, takes an even bolder step -- by filming in English.

"So far, English films in Bollywood were marginal films, but Being Cyrus is going to change that," said trade analyst Taran Adarsh.

"It marks the arrival of English films in Bollywood and we will now see more and more of them."

"Being Cyrus" tells the story of a young conman (Khan) who takes up lodgings as a paying guest with a quaint dysfunctional Parsi family and then turns the relatives against each other.

The slick, low-budget production opened two weeks ago and has so far grossed nearly $700,000 -- a small number for a traditional Bollywood hit, but an encouraging figure for an English-language film in India.

"This is the first time that a big star (Khan) has starred in a Bollywood English film, bringing a stamp of approval for this genre," said film critic Vinod Mirani.

Industry officials ascribe the success of Being Cyrus to two reasons -- first, a growing English-language audience and second the growth of multiplexes.

India has around 350 million people who are comfortable conversing in English, roughly equal to the combined populations of Britain and the United States.

Many of these people go to watch films in swanky multiplexes, one of the most visible symbols of India's economic growth.

"The small multiplexes have created a market for different kinds of cinema and the new generation filmmakers are aiming to cash in on the educated, well-groomed audience who go there to watch films," said Adarsh.

"It is a learning experience for many (filmmaking) people that the Indian audience has moved on," top Bollywood director Karan Johar was quoted as saying by a daily.

Bollywood's first mainstream English-language film was English August -- about a young bureaucrat's life in a small town -- released in the mid-1990s.

Hailed by critics, the film bombed at the box office and it wasn't until 2002 that another English-language film -- Hyderabad Blues -- was made. It fared a little better than the previous one.
Advance Booking Opens For Rajkummar Rao's Much-Awaited Gangster Drama Maalik!

The wait is finally over! Advance booking for the much-anticipated gangster saga Maalik, starring the

Wednesday, July 09, 2025
IMDb Announces Most Popular Indian Movies of 2025 So Far and Most Anticipated Indian Movies: July-December 2025!

IMDb (www.imdb.com), the world’s most popular and authoritative source for information on movies, TV

Wednesday, July 09, 2025
Madhur Bhandarkar Begins Shooting 'The Wives': A Bold New Chapter in Women-Centric Social Drama!

Madhur Bhandarkar, a name synonymous with bold and socially relevant cinema, has officially begun

Wednesday, July 09, 2025
Bollywood Shocker: Alia Bhatt Duped by Her Own Personal Assistant!

In a major fraud case that has rocked Bollywood, Alia Bhatt’s former personal assistant, Vedika Prakash

Wednesday, July 09, 2025
Ashi Singh on playing a quiet but strong character in First Copy, streaming on Amazon MX Player!

Amazon’s free streaming service, Amazon MX Player, transports viewers to the gritty lanes of

Wednesday, July 09, 2025