Don't lie. Whenever you watch an American film, you secretly wish that all the characters suddenly burst into song. Enter Bollywood. And in lieu of doing actual research, for my article on Bollywood, I elected to have my Indian friend Buj just tell me what he thought were the best. So here it is, the indisputable list of best Bollywood movies.
5. Dhoom 2
Two words: Hrithik Roshan. I’m not going to lie; this movie was not originally on Buj’s list, but gosh darn it this is my blog and I’ll do with it what I will. This is the only Bollywood movie I’ve ever seen, it was awesome, and Hrithik is the most gorgeous man to ever walk the face of India. So there, I said it. Suck it, Buj! 
4. Kuch Kuch Hota HaiOn to the movies Buj actually likes. This is Hindi romantic comedy starring Shahrukh Khan and Kajol, who from the looks of it were a mid to late ‘90s Bollywood power couple (not that they were dating in real life). It’s basically a love triangle between a guy, a feminine woman, and a tomboy; the plot of the movie is the daughter of the first woman and the man trying to get her father and the second woman together. Don’t worry, I made that seem weirder than it actually is in the movie. Anyway, Ambuj says that what makes this film so great is the on-screen chemistry between Khan and Kajol, who plays the tomboy. So look out for that.
3. Kabhie Kushi Kabhie GhamThis movie, nicknamed K3G, is a melodrama starring Khan, Kajol, my man Hrithik, and another actress Kareena Kapoor, who my other Indian friend Achyut says is a butterface. There’s some stuff about class in there as well as themes of parental respect. And, when Buj saw this movie when he was six, he cried because “it was really sad.”
2. Dilwale Dilhunia le JayengeThe nickname for this Bollywood blockbuster is DDLJ, which, according to Ambuj, “is really fun if you say it ten times fast… in an Indian accent.” Through some extensive experimentation, I confirmed this observation. AGAIN, this one stars Khan and Kajol… I’m starting to think Buj has some sort of obsession with them. Anyway, in the movie, Khan plays a fun-loving party boy, Kajol is from a conservative family and, surprise, surprise, they get together! Whooo!
1. Three Idiots
The highest grossing movie ever in Bollywood, this film is about three unorthodox students studying at the Imperial College of Engineering (which is based of the university Buj’s dad went to!) They must fight to overcome an oppressive, by-the-book professor who threatens to stifle their creativity, and along the way, one of them falls in love the professor’s daughter, played by Butterface… I mean Kareena Kapoor. (Low blow there, sorry Kareena… that Achyut’s rubbing off on me). Based off the Wikipedia synopsis, this movie actually looked really good. If you have 164 minutes to spare, definitely check it out. And now I'm just going to leave you with this.
HOW IS DHOOM 2 NOT RATED #1 ON YOUR LIST?!? I am afraid that I have lost all respect for your ranking capabilities. Someone with no ranking capabilities clearly shouldn't be writing a top 5 blog. Therefore, it pains me to say that I will no longer be following your blog.
ReplyDeleteNooo it's only at #5 because Buj didnt list it and I needed it to be somewhere in there, OBVIOUSLY. Don't worry, Dhoom 2 will appear once again in this blog, in all its glory.
ReplyDeleteOkay. Let's go:
ReplyDelete5. Alright. Dhoom 2 is actually just an okay movie, but Hrithik justifies it.
4. Kuch Kuch Hota Hai. Has great, iconic music (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IS7MZ3pK5Ts), and unfortunately little else except for the fact that Shah Rukh Khan, my boyhood idol, is in it. But that's the case for a million different movies. Actually okay, but consistently overrated.
3. This is the pick I have the biggest problem with. Flat out, I think this movie is horrendous. I would have stopped watching after two minutes, if it weren't for the fact that I was watching with Spanish subtitles and that alone intrigued me. Too much Kareena was my first problem. The plot was stupid, and not in a Bollywood, "we'll make it crazy because we can" sort of way. Also, who breaks into Indian patriotic songs like the national anthem in the middle of a British school?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gd__ohEy7TM
All-around terrible movie, despite the fact that Kajol is ridiculously pretty. I admit, a Bollywood movie has made me cry, even when I was older than six. But not this one. This one just made me depressed that I had wasted so much of my Saturday afternoon.
2. DDLJ. My favorite Bollywood abbrev. And also has one amazing song with SRK and Kajol: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o060YhF4rHs. Outside of this, pretty neutral. Not a bad movie, but this is another one that people freak out over and I don't really know why.
1. Alright. When I first saw Three Idiots I was disappointed because it was too similar to a movie I would have put on my own list. I found out that it was made my the same guy. But it's a great movie - I'd watch it over again, my dad (who went to said college that this one was based off of too) said it was a great piece of social criticism, and it has the man, the legend: Aamir Khan.
But I would have so many different movies in my list that.