You might be surprised at the title of this thread, but I have found this the strongest string that unites India's multilingual, multicultural, multi-religious masses and a multitude of issues and problems.
Not a key contribution to economy. But it's not about economy at all.
Here's a demography of India's religions:
Bollywood is the opium of masses.
Hamzay
Conclusion: India doesn't have an ideology like the 'Two Nation Theory' that created Pakistan. So, India has to 'sedate her wild populations' with Bollywood. This is the cheap vision of this 'great country'.
The Indian motion picture and television industry is one of the largest and fastest growing sectors, contributing USD 8.1 billion (c. INR 50,000 Cr.) to the country’s economy, equating to 0.5% of GDP, in 2013, according to a new report launched on March 12. The sector also supports a significant 1.8 million (18.8 lac) jobs.
http://www.indiatimes.com/news/more...ia-industry-contributes-05-of-gdp-134203.html
Not a key contribution to economy. But it's not about economy at all.
With around 35% of the population being illiterate, films constitute an extremely significant medium to reach the majority of the population and unite it through the construction of a common imaginary. Cinema generally tackles the political and social issues that the country faces, and India is no exception. Since independence in 1947, Hindi cinema has emerged as the “national cinema” and considered the nation-building process as one of its “missions”. What is more specific to India, however, is the long tradition of political involvement of film stars in politics, not only as “communication” figures adding glamour to a politician’s campaign, but as actual elected members of government. The careers of major figures of Indian cinema such as Marudhur Gopalan Ramachdran (known as “MGR”), Sunil Dutt, Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao or Amitabh Bachchan show how much the shift from cinema to politics is almost natural in a country where the cinematographic production is, in spite of popular belief, extremely political.
http://www.inaglobal.fr/en/cinema/article/blurred-lines-between-politics-and-cinema-india-8110
Here's a demography of India's religions:
Bollywood is the opium of masses.
Hamzay
Conclusion: India doesn't have an ideology like the 'Two Nation Theory' that created Pakistan. So, India has to 'sedate her wild populations' with Bollywood. This is the cheap vision of this 'great country'.
Last edited: