Bollywood* Beginner Movies 10-12 — Comedy-Horror, Mollywood, and True History

Part 1 looked at romantic comedies. Part 2 branched out to action,  romance, and myth. Part 3 took us to where India intersects with our movies in Shakespeare, thrillers, and modern life.

Now, we're looking at the Bollywood take on comedy-horror and true history. We hadn't heard any of the history in these movies and you might be surprised too.

To give you a sample of what other movies are offered by other regions, we'll also sample a couple of movies from Mollywood (Kerala language Malayalam movies). Also, because I love these movies a lot.

 COMEDY-HORROR

10. Stree

Comedy-horror that isn't gory. In the small town of Chanderi, the menfolk live in fear of an evil spirit named "Stree" (Woman) who abducts men in the night during an annual festival. It was super fun while being quite suspenseful in places. (My review. Hannah and Rose discuss it here.)

MOLLYWOOD

11. Kumbalangi Nights

Four brothers living in a fishing village share a love-hate relationship with each other. Their relationships change when the three oldest help the fourth stand by his love. This is a Malayalam language film (hence "Mollywood") that gives a good sense of what South Indian movies can be. Confusing at first, just let it wash over you. (My review. Hannah and Rose discuss it here.)

• Maheshinte Prathikaaram
  (Maheshinte's Revenge)
  A villager in a small town swears off wearing shoes until he gets revenge from a local thug. Starring my favorite Malayalam actor (yes, I have one), this is a charmer. Again, just let it wash over you at the beginning. (Scott and I discuss it here. Hannah and Rose discuss it here.)
  

TRUE HISTORY

12. Raid

Sometimes the hero is a taxman. An honest IRS officer and his team raid a powerful politician suspected of evading taxation on an epic scale. This gripping story is based on actual events during 1981.  (My review. Hannah and Rose discuss it here.)

• Airlift
  When Iraq invades Kuwait in August, 1990, a callous Indian businessman becomes the spokesperson for more than 170,000 stranded countrymen. The result was the largest evacuation in history. (My review. Scott and I discuss it here. Hannah and Rose discuss it here.)
  
• Raazi
  The riveting account of a foreign intelligence (RAW) agent who, upon her father's request, is married into a family of military officials in Pakistan to relay information to India, prior to the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. (My review.)
  

For my complete list of recommended films, go here. The list begins with what I've seen most recently.

* "Bollywood" as I'm using it is shorthand for Indian movies in general. The Indian movie industry has a lot of different centers that are based on regional languages and storytelling styles. There will be a few recommendations from others as we go, however, generally speaking, Bollywood (Bombay/Mumbai) offers the easiest entry points for Western viewers.

We All Loved This One: Kumbalangi Nights

I'd read a good review of this Malayalam language Indian film and knew only that it was about four brothers in a tiny fishing town. And that it is a comedy-drama, a confusing yet common Indian description.

So none of us had any idea what to expect. It quickly became apparent that this was a movie you had to be prepared to let just wash over you in a state of confusion for the first 20 or 30 minutes. Luckily we were all willing to do that. After that it all came into focus and turned into a great movie with some twists that put us on the edge of our seats.

As my mother said:

The movie was beautiful to watch. Lovely, almost dreamlike landscapes instead of the usual crowded streets and scenes of many Indian movies. Good twist to the plot. This one is eye candy that relaxes and charms, making the story even more realistic.

I grew to love the four brothers from the wrong side of the tracks and the way they were dealing with their various dilemmas. I also was fascinated by their contrast with the family of one brother's girlfriend who seemed so perfect in every way and yet felt "off" from the beginning.

As the story goes on it is clear the director is telling us about families, how they are formed, and how they grow. The movie's twists were truly unexpected and there is a clear religious element that interested us as Kumbalangi is about 40% Christian.

All four of us kept talking about it the next day, so it did a great job of capturing our imaginations and hearts.

I feel lucky that it is streaming on Amazon so we were able to see it. I see that this director's first film is also streaming there and I want to watch that soon.

Rating — for viewers with medium Indian film experience. (It's not rocket science, but without any cultural background at all you might feel kind of lost.) 

Hannah and Rose discuss Kumbalangi Nights at An American's Guide to Bollywood.