Why B’wood takes a shine to English

[1]

Language is a dynamic thing. It doesn’t exist in isolation. Nor does it remain static. It changes with the times. A latest study reveals that more than half of Bollywood movies released during the last two years carried English words in their title. In 2011, 73 out of 131 movies released used English words.

2012 has already seen 50 out of 91 movies released with English titles. However it’s not just the titles, but the dialogues are also being infused with a generous dose of English.
While there are varied reasons contributing to the trend, tapping the English-speaking young audience tops the list.
We have a colonial legacy and with globalisation and access to Western pop culture through the Internet and television, there has been a big shift in the way Hindi is spoken, feels Alankrita Shrivastava, director of Turning 30!!! which was about a girl who spoke in English and thought in English.
“Films are a reflection of society. When society changes, films begin to reflect that change. I think Hindi as a popularly spoken language is redefining itself. Even in small towns one can find interesting usage of English words that have been incorporated into the commonly spoken Hindi. Then we have the multiplex culture, where a far more educated audience is watching films,” says Alankrita confirming that the new age filmmakers are not ignoring the small town audience.
The other contributing factor is the new crop of directors and writers who mostly belong to the urban set-up and thus opt for more and more subjects and plots based in an urban milieu.
“You have Bandra boys, townies, people in their 20s making films nowadays. So the language will reflect their language and the worlds they inhabit. The growing acceptance of English in mainstream films is proof enough that people want to belong to the global society,” says scriptwriter Aditya Kripalani.
Filmmaker Ahmed Faiyaz, whose first film is titled The Graveyard Shift, says that most of the cinema-going audience in urban India, the primary market for Hindi films, think, read and speak in English today. So it’s no longer seen as elitist as it was in the days of Monsoon Wedding and Mixed Doubles.
He adds that things are more creative and democratic than they were 20 years ago. Just as the audience has evolved, filmmakers have evolved as well and have been choosing subjects that are fresh and urban. “It’s an exciting time to make films as people are just as excited to consider watching a Cocktail as they are to watching a film like Barfi!. Sometimes an English title can do for a film what a Hindi title cannot. Case in point — The Dirty Picture, Shanghai, Delhi Belly and Once upon a time in Mumbai,” says Ahmed.