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Why Chinese identifty with Aamir Khan's 3 Idiots, Rancho & All Izz Well
Tell any thirty plus, green tea-spinning , traffic-snarled taxi driver across China that you are from India and he will almost spontaneously belt out AwaraHoon Mein - a 1950's Raj Kapoor Bollywood medley that had the entire nation gyrating to his tunes.
One of the first foreign films to seep through the bamboo curtain, the song held sway across the middle kingdom for more than half a century, until All izz well, the title song from Aamir Khan's 3 Idiots caught the modern hamburger-chomping, gizmoguzzling , tea-tripping Chinese. The film locally known as san geshagua - literally three idiots - has done astoundingly well in China and Hong Kong where it's been running houseful in cinemas for an unusually long five weeks.
Normally a Bollywood film would run in select multiplexes in Hong Kong for 1-2 weeks. The only other movie that has come close to the success of 3 Idiots is another Aamir Khan's Lagaan, which connected with the Hkk and Chinese audience because of its freedom struggle against the British. According to www.boxofficemojo .com, 3 Idiots is currently number 3 in Hong Kong in the sixth week of its re-release with mandarin subtitles bringing in over USD1.18 mn (Rs 5.9 crore).
"The phenomenal success of 3 Idiots in upcoming markets like Korea, Hong Kong is truly a testimony of the fact that good content is universally acceptable," says VidhuVinod Chopra, producer of the film. "We're thrilled to know that our film is actually clocking a better screen average ($11,576) than most mainstream Hollywood films in Hong Kong! I'm sure just like Korea, Hong Kong is going to be a winner for us," he adds. Copies of 3 Idiots are available at every street corner DVD retailer worth his Hollywood films, for the movie has not only caught eyeballs but also the hearts of millions across China.
"It's like the director gives you an onion (to make you cry) and 10 minutes later gives you a tickle (to make you laugh), I just kept on crying and laughing. Some sentences are enlightening. I like the singing and dancing tradition of Indians films. Good music!" says Jiaoxiaoke on Douban (www.douban.com), a popular Chinese website where people share reviews about films and books among other things.
3 Idiots won 9.2 points out of 10 on the Douban online poll in which more than 189,800 people participated. The movie got five stars from 70 percent of the pollsters and four stars 23 percent. "Funny and educational, the plot, cast and music are all exceptional ! Watched it ten times, still haven't had enough!" says a subscriber on Weibo, the Chinese equivalent of Twitter. Thanks largely to Raj Kapoor's films that entertained millions before Hollywood seized a starspangled hold on China India has always been synonymous with Bollywood in the Far East.
A common perception in modern China is that India is a colourful country where everybody sings and dances. Coupled with the TV serials about family squabbles that are akin to Cantonese TV dramas, the Chinese seem to soak in every soapsoaked sud of Indian cinema. "Most of my students, who are of Chinese origin, have seen 3 Idiots," says Lucy Wang, a high school teacher in Hkk.
"One of the students said she saw the movie because she heard about it from a Chinese celebrity who was promoting it on thenet," Wang adds. With magical backdrops, catchy songs, colourful clothes and action packed, dramatic scenes, Indian films and serials transport the Chinese away from their mundane desk office jobs and transport them to a magical, bubble gummy world where a rich girl can marry a poor boy, good always conquers evil, money isn't everything and love reunites all. Striking the right chord, Ma Yue, an editor with Shanghai Daily says, "I like the film. Rancho is a unique student, different from others. He dares to disobey unreasonable school principles and challenge authorities."
Tell any thirty plus, green tea-spinning , traffic-snarled taxi driver across China that you are from India and he will almost spontaneously belt out AwaraHoon Mein - a 1950's Raj Kapoor Bollywood medley that had the entire nation gyrating to his tunes.
One of the first foreign films to seep through the bamboo curtain, the song held sway across the middle kingdom for more than half a century, until All izz well, the title song from Aamir Khan's 3 Idiots caught the modern hamburger-chomping, gizmoguzzling , tea-tripping Chinese. The film locally known as san geshagua - literally three idiots - has done astoundingly well in China and Hong Kong where it's been running houseful in cinemas for an unusually long five weeks.
Normally a Bollywood film would run in select multiplexes in Hong Kong for 1-2 weeks. The only other movie that has come close to the success of 3 Idiots is another Aamir Khan's Lagaan, which connected with the Hkk and Chinese audience because of its freedom struggle against the British. According to www.boxofficemojo .com, 3 Idiots is currently number 3 in Hong Kong in the sixth week of its re-release with mandarin subtitles bringing in over USD1.18 mn (Rs 5.9 crore).
"The phenomenal success of 3 Idiots in upcoming markets like Korea, Hong Kong is truly a testimony of the fact that good content is universally acceptable," says VidhuVinod Chopra, producer of the film. "We're thrilled to know that our film is actually clocking a better screen average ($11,576) than most mainstream Hollywood films in Hong Kong! I'm sure just like Korea, Hong Kong is going to be a winner for us," he adds. Copies of 3 Idiots are available at every street corner DVD retailer worth his Hollywood films, for the movie has not only caught eyeballs but also the hearts of millions across China.
"It's like the director gives you an onion (to make you cry) and 10 minutes later gives you a tickle (to make you laugh), I just kept on crying and laughing. Some sentences are enlightening. I like the singing and dancing tradition of Indians films. Good music!" says Jiaoxiaoke on Douban (www.douban.com), a popular Chinese website where people share reviews about films and books among other things.
3 Idiots won 9.2 points out of 10 on the Douban online poll in which more than 189,800 people participated. The movie got five stars from 70 percent of the pollsters and four stars 23 percent. "Funny and educational, the plot, cast and music are all exceptional ! Watched it ten times, still haven't had enough!" says a subscriber on Weibo, the Chinese equivalent of Twitter. Thanks largely to Raj Kapoor's films that entertained millions before Hollywood seized a starspangled hold on China India has always been synonymous with Bollywood in the Far East.
A common perception in modern China is that India is a colourful country where everybody sings and dances. Coupled with the TV serials about family squabbles that are akin to Cantonese TV dramas, the Chinese seem to soak in every soapsoaked sud of Indian cinema. "Most of my students, who are of Chinese origin, have seen 3 Idiots," says Lucy Wang, a high school teacher in Hkk.
"One of the students said she saw the movie because she heard about it from a Chinese celebrity who was promoting it on thenet," Wang adds. With magical backdrops, catchy songs, colourful clothes and action packed, dramatic scenes, Indian films and serials transport the Chinese away from their mundane desk office jobs and transport them to a magical, bubble gummy world where a rich girl can marry a poor boy, good always conquers evil, money isn't everything and love reunites all. Striking the right chord, Ma Yue, an editor with Shanghai Daily says, "I like the film. Rancho is a unique student, different from others. He dares to disobey unreasonable school principles and challenge authorities."
