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side of Western ways look beyond their assumptions, perhaps they will 
discard their reliance on stereotypes and start paying their overseas 
family an increased measure of respect. And when filmmakers who take the 
homesick and patriotic themes beyond believability analyze their own 
feelings, perhaps they will realize that what NRIs hold dear in their 
hearts is no different from what those at home should be proud of. n

NOTE: All box office figures are reported as US$ and are courtesy of 
Variety Magazine online archives. Not all Hindi films abroad report box 
office, and not all box office reports are available.

Jeanne E. Fredriksen writes from Chicago. She is family with, friends 
with, acquainted with, and works for NRIs with an amazing variety of 
personalities, attitudes, hopes, dreams, goals, livelihoods, needs, 
wants, and beliefs.

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Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge

So globally successful is the film that in 1999 it warranted a billboard 
outside Shinjuku train station in Tokyo, Japan, announcing its 
screenings sponsored by India Center there. Shinjuku is the 
entertainment center of Tokyo, and there is plenty of high-profile 
competition for attention, attendance, and box office. In Japan, where 
Indian films enjoy a certain popularity with the natives, the country's 
1995 population census of 125.6 million persons showed only 4,244 were 
Indian with an additional 13,589 being other South Asians. Without 
question, DDLJ continues to be a favorite whenever, wherever offered for 
viewing.

Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham

According to a report in the South China Morning Post in January, 2002, 
all screenings of K3G in December, 2001, were sell-outs in Hong Kong, 
while pirated copies of the film were the hottest items circulating on 
the island. Hong Kong's 2001 population census of 6.3 million people 
revealed that 18,543 were Indian and another 23,581 were Nepalese and 
Pakistani. K3G's popularity in the Special Administrative Region was 
impressive because Hong Kong enjoys being the third-largest producer of 
films by volume after India and the U.S.  	


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Bhansali's Musical Heaven

By ANIRUDDH CHAWDA

DEVDAS (Universal, 2002). Hindi film soundtrack. Music: Ismail Darbar. 
Lyrics: Nusrat Badr

For perhaps the most eagerly anticipated film of the year, filmmaker 
Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Devdas had to deliver a score that not only met 
the hype but also let Ismail Darbar prove that the mega-selling Hum Dil 
De Chuke Sanam was no one-time flash in the pan. By devising a 
semi-classical, once-in-a-decade, 100 percent "Indian" musical score, 
Bhansali and Darbar emerge victorious in baking and serving a 10-layer 
monumental soundtrack.

What is most groundbreaking is the powerful one-two punch of lyrics by 
newcomer Nusrat Badr and the from-soul-voice of first-timer Shreya 
Ghosal. Ghosal's voice, reminiscent of both Suman Kalyanpur with a 
slightly thicker pitch and Anuradha Paudwal without the nasal monotone, 
is the most original singing voice since Kavita Subramaniam appeared in 
the Mangeshkar mold. Ghosal's "Silsila ye chaahat ka" is a sultry 
tabla-dominated opening to 52 minutes of sheer musical bliss. "Maar 
daala" (Subramaniam, KK) is an excellent example of the use of classical 
ragas to complement, rather than fill-in, interludes between verses. On 
"Kahe chhed," Pandit Birju Maharaj, using his own tune, adds an 
intoxicating opening for Madhuri Dixit's vocals and Subramaniam to 
finish out a piercing song of longing.

While a combination of Ghosal and Subramaniam give life to on-screen 
lip-synching for Madhuri Dixit and Aishwarya Rai, on the male side Udit 
Narayan fronts for Shah Rukh Khan. Narayan's on-target "Bairi piya," a 
duet with Ghosal, could find company in many Lata-Rafi duets of yore. 
The up-tempo "Chalak chalak" again smoothly floats Narayan with Vinod 
Rathod and Ghosal while Subramaniam and Ghosal's jugalbandhi on "Dola re 
dola" simply shakes the rafters.

Packaged in Universal's Bombay plant, the earliest CD pressings have a 
cheap, paper-thin casing. Purists may consider replacing the cheap cover 
with a store-bought sturdier one. At a suggested Bombay retail value of 
about $2 and selling like hot cakes stateside for $10 a pop, Devdas is 
without doubt a huge profit-maker for the multinational music marketer. 
But buyers beware: avoid being distracted by bootleg CDs. This 
exceptional music and exceptionally well-recorded CD deserve 
unadulterated musical glory. Pop in only a properly copyrighted, 
original CD and let Darbar & Co. whisk you away on a magical musical 
ride.

Lifelong cinephile Aniruddh Chawda lives, works, and writes from 
Wisconsin, on America's north coast.

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