India‘s Identities Through Bollywood Cinema: Panel discussion at Lincoln Center

By Mabel Pais

India’s Identities through Bollywood Cinema, was a panel discussion at one of Lincoln Center’s Film Center, in early August.  It explored the Hindi film industry’s (colloquially known as Bollywood) role in uniting Indians from different religious, ethnic, linguistic, economic, and class backgrounds. For over a century Bollywood has attempted to represent the country’s multitude of voices.

The panel of expert filmmakers, journalists, and academics explored how Bollywood cinema represents India’s various identities and how that storytelling can continue to evolve and include all Indians.

The moderator, Pulkit Datta, a freelance filmmaker, led the discussion.  He has worked on a wide variety of productions internationally, in addition to writing, directing and producing his own passion projects. Datta is also the Media Producer for The India Center Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting dialogue and cultural exchange between the U.S and India.

Panelists were Tejaswini Ganti (Associate Professor, NYU), Sri Rao (screenwriter/producer), and Anisha Jhaveri (Film Critic, Indiewire).

Bollywood Boulevard: A Journey Through Hindi Cinema, was the mainstay to the dual events on Bollywood.  Created by MELA Productions in association with Aaditaal Music Project, the song-and-dance presentation debuting in August, was part of Summer 2017 Lincoln Center’s Out of Doors Festival at Damrosch Park.  It attracted over 4,000 patrons.

Bollywood Boulevard — a harmonious fusion of live music, dance, and film — led you from the birth of Hindi cinema to present day. You experienced the spirit, artistry, and history of India’s famous film industry from the classics of the black-and-white era and the timeless songs of Bollywood’s Golden Era to the foot-tapping blockbusters of today.

The event was inspired by the music of R.D. Burman, Lata Mangeshkar, and A.R. Rahman, the dance moves of superstars like Amitabh Bachchan and Priyanka Chopra, and romance as captured by Raj Kapoor and Yash Raj Chopra. It was an escape to grand palaces and mustard fields and dance clubs. Bollywood had captured the hearts of billions across the world over the generations for its vibrance, emotions, and heart-pounding beat that inspired the world’s largest entertainment industry.

While the performance cast hails from the Tri-state, the project itself was an international collaboration between creatives based in the U.S. and India. Featuring 18 dancers, 9 musicians, digital backdrops and short films, over 100 years of Indian artistry of Hindi cinema was alive during this exuberant stage show. This vibrant group of dancers and musicians took the audience on a journey through time as they captured the history of Bollywood, from black-and-white classics to colorful blockbusters, stringing the spirit and romance of India’s grand palaces, mountain vistas, and sweeping mustard fields to Damrosch Park.

Bollywood Boulevard demonstrated the magnetic power of Hindi cinema and Indian entertainment. Audience members engaged in the performance by singing along with the singers and dancing in the aisles.

Lincoln Center not only served as the presenter of the show, but also the lead commissioning partner, breathing life into an idea conceived by Heena Patel of MELA Productions and created in partnership with Rushi Vakil of Aaditaal Music Project.

“There are so many skilled Bollywood dancers and musicians in the five boroughs and New Jersey – Lincoln Center’s backyard – but with limited professional opportunities. By commissioning this show, it was an opportunity for us to invest in the next generation of creators from this community and showcase what they are capable of,” says Jill Sternheimer, Director of Public Programming at Lincoln Center.

 “Every person involved is an ardent fan of Hindi cinema and their passion could be seen in each aspect of the show,” says India-based executive producer, creator, and music director Rushi Vakil.

“The premiere was more than what we could have imagined. It truly was an evening of pure love, joy, and beauty, and to see the show so thoroughly enjoyed made all the hard work of the last 8 months worth it,” says U.S.-based executive producer, creator, and dancer Heena Patel.

With the overwhelmingly positive response, Bollywood Boulevard will commence on a tour in early 2018 with a series of performances in February and March in New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, and New York before heading across the country later in the year.

Executive Producer Heena Patel, MELA Productions (USA); Rushi Vakil, Aaditaal Music Project (India)

Artistic Director Heena Patel; Music Director, Original Music, Background Score Rushi Vakil; Music Team Kanishka Bhatia, Maharshi Patel, Anil Jeengar; Choreographer Rohit Gijare (USA); Assistant Choreographer Aaliya Islam; Scriptwriter Bhargav Purohit (India); Film and Animation Faldu Studio (India); Backdrop Production Nyasa Productions (India); Costume Designer Vaishali Vakil, Kasbee (India)

Dancers included Aaliya Islam, Aria Dandawate, Avinash Gabbeta, Barkha Patel, Bhumit Patel, Bindi Patel, Geatali Tampy, Heena Patel, Manav Gulati, Minal Mehta, Payal Kadakia, Poonam Desai, Pranav Patel, Proma Khosla, Rhea Ghosh, Rohit Gijare, Rohit Thakre, Sean Kulsum

Musicians included Achal Murthy (Bass), Varun Das (Drumkit), Niranjan Nayar (Guitar), Rohan Prabhudesai (Keyboard), Sanjoy Karmakar (Percusion), Harini (Rini) Raghavan (Violin), Harini (Rini) Raghavan, Harshitha Krishnan, Krishna Sridharan, Neel Nadkarni (Vocals).

Bollywood Boulevard was commissioned by Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, along with the Bushnell Center for Performing Arts, and The Jay and Linda Grunin Center, with additional support from the Patels. Additional support for the Lincoln Center presentation came from the India Center Foundation, Anil Bansal, and Raoul Bhavnani.

For more information on Bollywood Boulevard, please visit: http://bollywoodblvdshow.com/

(Mabel Pais is a freelance writer.  She writes on the arts and entertainment, health and wellness, social issues and spirituality)