36 Facts About Bollywood

The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" and "Hollywood".

Name "Bollywood" was coined during the 1970s, when the conventions of commercial Hindi films were defined.

Bollywood has long influenced Indian society and culture as the biggest entertainment industry; many of the country's musical, dancing, wedding and fashion trends are Bollywood-inspired.

Kronos Quartet re-recorded several R D Burman compositions sung by Asha Bhosle for their 2005 album, You've Stolen My Heart: Songs from R D Burman's Bollywood, which was nominated for Best Contemporary World Music Album at the 2006 Grammy Awards.

Bollywood plots have tended to be melodramatic, frequently using formulaic ingredients such as star-crossed lovers, angry parents, love triangles, family ties, sacrifice, political corruption, kidnapping, villains, kind-hearted courtesans, long-lost relatives and siblings, reversals of fortune and serendipity.

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Studies have indicated that some people, unaware that changing fashion in Bollywood films is often influenced by globalisation, consider the clothes worn by Bollywood actors as authentically Indian.

Since many Bollywood films are shot abroad, many foreign extras are employed.

Bollywood songs were introduced with Ardeshir Irani's Alam Ara song, "De De Khuda Ke Naam pay pyaare".

Bollywood songs are generally pre-recorded by professional playback singers, with the actors then lip syncing the words to the song on-screen.

Bollywood films are multi-million dollar productions, with the most expensive productions costing up to 1 billion.

The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry estimates that the Bollywood industry loses $100 million annually from unlicensed home videos and DVDs.

Bollywood's increasing use of international settings such as Switzerland, London, Paris, New York, Mexico, Brazil and Singapore does not necessarily represent the people and cultures of those locales.

Bollywood entered the consciousness of Western audiences and producers during the late 20th century, and Western actors now seek roles in Bollywood films.

Bollywood films are popular in Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Nepal, where Hindustani is widely understood.

Bollywood films are popular in Southeast Asia, particularly in maritime Southeast Asia.

India has cultural ties with Indonesia, and Bollywood films were introduced to the country at the end of World War II in 1945.

The "angry young man" films of Amitabh Bachchan and Salim–Javed were popular during the 1970s and 1980s before Bollywood's popularity began gradually declining in the 1980s and 1990s.

Bollywood has had a strong presence in Indonesia since then, particularly Shah Rukh Khan films such as Mohabbatein, Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham.

Some Bollywood films have been widely appreciated in China, Japan, and South Korea.

Australia has a large South Asian diaspora, and Bollywood is popular amongst non-Asians in the country as well.

Bollywood films are popular in the former Soviet Union, and have been dubbed into Russian.

The films from Bollywood strengthened family values, which was a big factor for their popularity with the government authorities in the Soviet Union.

Bollywood was introduced to Polish audiences with the 2005 release of Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham.

Bollywood films are often covered in Gazeta Wyborcza, formerly Poland's largest newspaper.

Bollywood has progressed in Israel since the early 2000s, with channels dedicated to Indian films on cable television; MBC Bollywood and Zee Aflam show Hindi movies and serials.

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Bollywood films are not influential in most of South America, although its culture and dance is recognised.

Unlike Europe and North America, where Indian films cater to the expatriate marke, Bollywood films became popular in West Africa despite the lack of a significant Indian audience.

Several Bollywood figures have travelled to Africa for films and off-camera projects.

Bollywood, however, seems to be diminishing in popularity in Africa.

In Ethiopia, Bollywood movies are shown with Hollywood productions in town square theatres such as the Cinema Ethiopia in Addis Ababa.

Many Bollywood films have been commercially successful in the United Kingdom.

Bollywood is appreciated in France, Germany, the Netherlands, and Scandinavia.

Bollywood films are dubbed in German and shown regularly on the German television channel RTL II.

Bollywood has a large German fan base, particularly in Berlin.

Bollywood has experienced revenue growth in Canada and the United States, particularly in the South Asian communities of large cities such as Toronto, Chicago, and New York City.

Commonly-reported justification for plagiarism in Bollywood is that cautious producers want to remake popular Hollywood films in an Indian context.