Imitation is the Sincerest Form

Malamaal Weekly

Could somebody please stop the Bollywood auteurs from sinking into artistic irrelevance by being so apologetic about copying the West? After you add the jhankar beats, after you hand over a Fender Strat to Sush (Zindaggi Rocks) and a 1719 Strad to bikini clad Chinto Jaitley, you're operating on a whole new level sonny boy!

A particularly egregious case came to my knowledge a couple of days back when, on a road trip, I managed to catch a not unenjoyable flick by director Priyadarshan. In true Bollywood fashion, he claimed that the story was brand new, and also announced a cash prize for anyone who proved that it wasn't. Well, further research reveals that the story is indeed stolen from an Irish movie but the director isn't paying up...