Does Bollywood Have a Political Agenda?

Amrita Ghosh and Bhakti Shringarpure ask if Bollywood these days can be seen as mindless entertainment or if it is peddling political agendas. The world’s biggest film industry has seen some massively successful blockbusters sprinkle their plots with allusions to Kashmir, British colonialism, terrorism, geopolitics, espionage and religion all heavily laced with an over the top patriotism. Lyricist, poet and Bollywood insider Husan Haidry joins the podcast to speak about a changing film industry. Haidry shot to fame after a performance of his poem “Hindustani Mussalman” and discusses the complex and contradictory nature of Bollywood which tends to negatively depict Muslim characters while having so many big Muslim superstars that carry the industry. The three also recommend many exciting, independent film coming out of India and that subvert the messaging of Bollywood blockbusters.