Asia | Banyan

How to unite India, Bollywood-style

India’s divided north and south are drawing closer in unlikely ways

Illustration of a crowd of people with a large movie camera
Image: Lan Truong

A NEW FILM has brought mayhem to India’s cinemas. One of Banyan’s colleagues watched it in the southern city of Chennai and could barely hear the dialogue for all the hooting, whistling and dancing in the aisles. Outside the hall, fans poured milk over giant cut-outs of its lead actor. In Mumbai they arrived with brass bands and banners. Shows start as early as 7.30am and as late as 11.55pm. It is a non-stop party.

This article appeared in the Asia section of the print edition under the headline “One nation under Bollywood”

From the September 16th 2023 edition

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