I love what you call my “personal color issues”. Perhaps you are not aware, but Indian people like myself grow up in America constantly having our traditions mocked and our lives pointed out as if they are strange or curious. At least that was the way it used to be. And then you grow up, and it’s suddenly trendy to like bollywood, bhangra and all things indian. And you get a bunch of westerners like yourself, commenting authoritatively on all things Indian like they are experts, but of course with the requisite disparaging remarks about our culture, misogyny, backwardness or what have you. These are not just “my issues” these are things that the desi intelligentsia (the kind that don’t watch bollywood, thank god) have been complaining about for years.

Still it’s not shocking; white people love to exoticize and marginalize others, but as soon as you point this out, you’re the one with “color issues”.

Let me ask you this, do you sincerely disagree that a person of Indian heritage is more capable of understanding and interpreting an indian film than a foreigner?

Any discussion of how a film is doing at the box offices in India sooner or later touches on these same differences, and what sells better where.

It’s a pity that your personal color issues so strongly obscure your ability to absorb anything I write, save through a filter of racial bias.

It’d be interesting to hear you comment on the film itself; what you thought about it, what you liked and why or what you thought could be done better.

Seems like typical Western arrogance to my eyes.

Gautham, my reference to NRIs and foreign audiences was that they are likely secondary and tertiary markets AFTER the domestic Indian audience has been considered. I would definitely expect the film to do well in Bombay/Delhi/Pune etc.

My point was that if they are indeed considering the NRI/foreign audience (which I understand from UTV folks they are), they needed to have someone give a final onceover at the subtitles. It was just sloppy work. And I never hinted, never mind implied, that “foreigners” are more sophisticated. That’s got nothing to do with it. My point on the subtitles is that it’s just a practicality, like making sure that a DVD is ‘all regions’, or region-appropriate, if you’re going to sell it in another country than the home market one.

Why do you say this film is aimed at NRIs and foreign audience? From what I hear, it has been extremely well received in the Metros back home. Indians are not all ignorant and incapable of watching films aside from Bollywood romances, you know. Foreigners are not inherently more sophisticated either.

http://www.vanajathefilm.com/index.html

I just read in one of your older posts about one of your parents not being well. I’m very sorry to hear that and I hope they recover soon!