BOLLYWOOD OUTSIDE INDIA

1. My first job outside India was in Muscat, Oman (May 1993). At that time, the spread of TV channels was not as prolific as today. In fact, there were no Indian channels available. Also, being my first visit, it did not strike to carry music cassettes. For several months, after being deprived of Indian music, we started getting some channels & I heard Lata’s old song. And what an experience it was! It was then that I realized that my heart had solidified & was getting thawed like Indian white butter brought out of the freezer as Lata’s eternal voice flowe
   
2. In Muscat, we had a duplex house, in which our landlord was our neighbour. When his daughter’s school bus arrived to drop her, often the Omani school girls were playing Antakshari & there would be Bollywood songs in between! 
3. In the malls, it was not uncommon to hear Hindi songs being played. The same I found in Bahrain where I worked later & in UAE where I used to visit often for official work 
4. In all these places, there was atleast 1 theatre playing Hindi movies (many places more) all around the year. Movies of other Indian languages were also being played. In the theatres, one could find many nationalities – mostly Asians – as spectators. 
5. Later I moved to Milan, Italy. Here on many Saturday evenings, Hindi movie is played on the national TV channel with dialogues dubbed in Italian. 
6. As part of my work in Milan, I visited Cairo. At the Cairo airport, the driver who had come to pick us had a Hindi movie song as his ring tone. 
7. I was in Cairo for 4/5 days. Often in public places, Egyptians would ask whether I am an Indian & then tell me their love about Indian movies. Especially, they are fans of Amitabh Bacchan
8. In Italy, at the time of third renewal of our Visa, it was necessary that I acquire Italian language skills up to at least A2 level. There were classes held for us for teaching Italian, which were mandatory. I attended these classes. There were around 25 students. On the first day itself, when we introduced ourselves, the students came to know that I was from India and they cheered me - India, India, Bollywood. After the class, they all surrounded me and started asking me questions about Bollywood songs, actors, films, etc. 

What the big screen of Indian cinema is doing to spread awareness about India, soon the small screen will take over as availability of channels improves across the world. Indian Entertainment Industry has a great future. And thankfully, it is a labour intensive industry.