Let’s be real. Hollywood has been influencing Bollywood and other Indian regional film industries since their inception. With patriotic and drama films being the core make up of films during the 50s and 60s (sometimes even both), most fight scenes have been pretty rudimentary, pretty similar to the 50s and 60s American comics, with sound-effects of “POW” and “KABAAM” accentuating each hit. But one of the recent biggest influences of the Indian over the top action sequences are the Kung-Fu films of the old and of course – Superhero movies.
A lot of action stunts which you see in Bollywood, Kollywood or Tollywood (these three are the primary action heavy Indian film industries, currently) are done using wires; and movie studios don’t even try to hide that fact well. With over the top action and a barely believable plot, the film garners audience attention with lacklustre wire-work and semi-impressive superhero stunts. This is the sad reality of most action films coming out of India.
Of course, Indian filmmakers have tried their hand at making Superhero films. The ‘Krrish’ series have been successful in the box office but most critics have panned the series. The 2012 ‘Mugamoodi’, a Tamil Superhero film, was more of the same. ‘A Flying Jatt’ has a lot of brilliant action sequences but a very questionable plot and an even more questionable female lead character (among other issues). These films have put off a lot of production houses from attempting another superhero project.
But with the rise of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and their impressive stories, action and CGI, Indian film industries have decided to try again. Keeping the core ideals required in the genre which includes: having a relatable origin story, making believable characters, understanding what being a hero means and how to face unbeatable odds; all the while backing this “superhero formula” with a good story. This is what we can see in the 2018 flick, ‘Bhavesh Joshi Superhero’.
Granted there is still more work to be done before we can create our own genuine superheroes, and hopefully they will have relatable themes and a realistic storyline. Mollywood’s ‘Minnal Murali’ seems to be on the right track and we hope that the film succeeds, just so that Indian filmmakers understand that there is an untapped action genre out there which can garner audience attention, if done right.