I'm enjoying this thread a lot.
I think what is interesting about the cricket, is not the 'veracity' of
how the game is played in Lagaan, but how it is adapted for the
specific 'skills' of each member of the Indian team, and the fact that
this is a multi-racial, multi-religious and multi-caste team, producing
I think an imagined ideal, a mythic construction for imagining into
existence a 'united' post-colonial India. This is emphasized by the
fact that the crux of the narrative is the 'overthrow', or 'bowling
out' or 'outrunning' (excuse the puns) of the colonial oppressors and
those 'puppet' landowners who try to appear to have the 'people's'
interests at heart.
Oh, and just a comment about the length of Lagaan to Elaine. That's one
of the things that makes it a Bollywood film! 3 hours is the standard.
Furthermore, I do really like the works of Nair and Metha, but I agree
with Sukhbir that they are definitely not in the range of Bollywood
production, they are resolutely made for non-Indian audiences and
should not be taught to students as somehow 'representative' of Indian,
let alone Bollywood cinema. They do, however intersect with discourses
on postcolonialism, diaspora etc.
Cheers,
Michelle
Dr Michelle Langford
Associate Lecturer
School of Media, Film & Theatre
The University of New South Wales
Sydney 2052 Australia
Room: Webster 311O
Phone: 02 9385 4489
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