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Matter over mind

Another mindless Hindi flick becomes a blockbuster, crosses the 200 cr. mark. Salman Khan's Kick, hailed by everyone as a supreme no-brainer, expectedly sets box-office afire.

Its really amazing, the Indian viewer's tolerance towards, and endorsement of Bollywood trash. Cocking a snook towards critics and reviews, filmmakers laugh all the way to the bank on the basis of their masala pot-boilers. A little of everything: superhero gymnastics, social message, violence, revenge, romance, eve-teasing, item song and dance, bicep flexing, and voila, you have a readymade recipe for a hit. Add an ageing hero, with a massive, crazy fan-following, and you have a blockbuster on your hands.

No logic, no rationale can explain this phenomena. I wonder about it again and again, after Dabangg 1 &2, Chennai Express, Dhoom 3, Krish 3, all go down in Bollywood history as top grossing blockbusters.

What is it about these films that people flock to see them? Is it the ageing hero, who epitomizes male machismo, defying age and disease to emerge stronger? Or is the plot the winner, causing absolutely no strain on your mental faculties? Or is it because the Indian audience and the NRI for that matter, so fed up of grim realities reported in news channels, that it seeks escape and refuge in the total unreality portrayed in these films?

I guess I will never know. So I am content to crib....
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