Slumdog Millionaire succeeded in snagging a couple of Oscars last year, winning eight awards out of their ten nominations . Even though the film was not a true Bollywood production by any stretch of the imagination, it cracked the doors to Hollywood open for Indian pop culture to slip in quietly but colorfully.
Most people don't know that India has the largest film industry in the world in terms of number of films produced and ticket sales—larger even than the United States, which remains the largest in terms of revenue. Bollywood moviegoers expect a full entertainment experience at the movies (shouldn't we all?), so music and dance are almost always a prominent feature of popular Indian films. No matter if you are watching a murder mystery or a romantic comedy, there will be some dancing on that screen. And now the song and dance is moving off the screen and onto Twin Cities' big screens and dance floors.
Bollywood fusion, Punjabi hip hop and Bhangra are a few of the major styles of Indian pop music and dance that are featured at local dance nights (mainly hosted by Nasha Entertainment at Envy. You don't have to wear a sari to fit in (or a black mesh T-shirt like the one pictured). Stick to your club-worthy threads instead. These "Bhangra Nights" are fun for anyone who likes to shake it—and especially those of us who think marching to the beat of techno music or rubbing up against each other to autotuned hip hop is not dancing.
If you want to practice your Bollywood boogie before you step out, below are some videos to help you. Even better, check out Brookdale 8 Cinemas in Brooklyn Center, a discount theater where just a couple of bucks will get you in to see Hindi and Telugu movies. They have seven Indian films playing this week and I'm sure at least one of those will help you hone your dance moves. Or just learn the choreography to Beyonce's "Single Ladies" because that works in any situation that requires dancing.
This one will either help you with your dancing or make you feel really bad about your abs. We can't all be Aishwarya Rai. It's from Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam (1999).
This next one is from Om Shanti Om, which was a pretty popular film from 2007. If you think male dancers always take a back seat to the girls, think again. The clip is a little long, so feel free to skip around.
This one doesn't have any dance moves to learn unless you count standing/whistling atop a moving motorcycle and sidecar, but it's just so cute and cheesy. The song is about friendship and it's from a classic Hindi film, Sholay. The friends, Amitabh Bachchan and Dharmendra, are essentially the most famous Bollywood actors ever. It's one of my favorites.
