In September 2007, my family and I went on a holiday to India. While there, I saw magnificent works of architecture, ate delicious local cuisine, met many wonderful people and after three weeks returned home with a greater understanding of a culture so very different from me own. But was the Taj Mahal the highlight? No. For me, the highlight of the trip was when we went to see a Bollywood film called Dhamaal.
Now Dhamaal isn't what you think of when you think of Bollywood movie. It is not a beautiful film filled with graceful dance numbers. It is a comedy, one of the most moronic comedies I've ever seen actually. The gags are idiotic and are accompanied by the most cheesy of sound effects, the acting is terrible (you didn't need to be able to speak Hindi to figure that out - and no, the movie did not have subtitles, althought it would occasionally switch to English...for no apparent reason). Best of all, many of the sequences are lifted DIRECTLY out of Western films, including Johnny English, Starsky and Hutch and Bean, with a plot taken directly from Rat Race.
Honestly, it was one of the most bizarre viewing experiences of my life. The cinema was packed with local movie patrons, all of whom thought the movie was absolutely hilarious. I can't say I agreed, but with the combination of the infectious atmosphere and my utter incredulity at the blatant plagurism of the movie, I have to admit I had a lot of fun with Dhamaal - and somewhat appropriately, according to the films wikipedia entry that is exactly what Dhamaal means: "fun".
So enjoy this clip of Indra Kumar's 2007 comedy Dhamaal. Oh, and be sure to watch all the way to the end, because the last sixty seconds of this clip (the opening credit sequence) are by far the most ridiculous. Not exactly what you think of in a Bollywood dance sequence am I right?. And there are multiple musical interludes in the film that are just like this one.
Now Dhamaal isn't what you think of when you think of Bollywood movie. It is not a beautiful film filled with graceful dance numbers. It is a comedy, one of the most moronic comedies I've ever seen actually. The gags are idiotic and are accompanied by the most cheesy of sound effects, the acting is terrible (you didn't need to be able to speak Hindi to figure that out - and no, the movie did not have subtitles, althought it would occasionally switch to English...for no apparent reason). Best of all, many of the sequences are lifted DIRECTLY out of Western films, including Johnny English, Starsky and Hutch and Bean, with a plot taken directly from Rat Race.
Honestly, it was one of the most bizarre viewing experiences of my life. The cinema was packed with local movie patrons, all of whom thought the movie was absolutely hilarious. I can't say I agreed, but with the combination of the infectious atmosphere and my utter incredulity at the blatant plagurism of the movie, I have to admit I had a lot of fun with Dhamaal - and somewhat appropriately, according to the films wikipedia entry that is exactly what Dhamaal means: "fun".
So enjoy this clip of Indra Kumar's 2007 comedy Dhamaal. Oh, and be sure to watch all the way to the end, because the last sixty seconds of this clip (the opening credit sequence) are by far the most ridiculous. Not exactly what you think of in a Bollywood dance sequence am I right?. And there are multiple musical interludes in the film that are just like this one.
