Teen Patti, 2010
With the name of a popular Indian card game as its title, it's no surprise that 2010's Hindi-language Teen Patti introduces us to a plot about playing casino games. Amitabh Bachchan stars as Professor Venkat Subramaniam. This character visits a casino in London and reveals that he has a probability theory that would allow players to successfully guess the cards held by other players in a game of Teen Patti.
His theory is rejected but he is determined to try it out, so sets up an experiment with some of his students. Once the theory is proven to work, Venkat takes it to the Adda in Bombay followed by casinos and private gambling clubs. However, it's not all plain sailing and the team soon runs into problems. The movie got a 3.5-star review from IndiaTimes.com.
The Great Gambler, 1979
This movie from 1979 was released in Hindi as Sabse Bada Zuari and is highly regarded despite not being a huge success at the box office. An action-thriller featuring international spies working undercover, it was filmed in locations such as Rome, Cairo, and Lisbon, as well as Goa.
Amitabh Bachchan plays Jay, a cool gambler who never loses and who helps trap a government agent into handing over the blueprints of a top-secret laser weapon. Some of the most interesting scenes are at the casino tables, but there are also plenty of plot twists to keep viewers on the edge of their seats.
Striker, 2010
Unlike the other movies we have looked at, this 2010 Hindi-language film is based on a true story. Siddharth Narayan plays the role of Suryakant Sarang, who becomes an expert at carrom before giving the game up.
This movie is perhaps best remembered for being the first-ever Indian film to get a premiere on YouTube the same day that it was released in cinemas, as confirmed by HindustanTimes.com. It didn't prove to be particularly successful at the box office, but earned over 800,000 YouTube views in the first couple of weeks after release.
It's quite clear that gambling has a strong presence in Bollywood films, and online gambling is arguably becoming as popular as Bollywood itself. The games featured in these films are hosted on many online gambling sites, such as BettingGuru.in, which further demonstrates the link between these two types of entertainment. The hundreds of casinos hosted at this site, and the different incentives on offer, reflect the diversity of its audience in terms of interests and requirements.
These audience requirements aren't dissimilar to that of Bollywood and the vast array of genres and themes it offers, so it's no wonder the two are, not only linked, but linked successfully. Watching any of these classic movies will let you taste the thrills and spills of casino games at any time while immersing yourself in the fun and the drama of Bollywood.
