Academic Journal
Laughter Through the Ages: Role of Comedy Films in Shaping Bollywood.
| Title: | Laughter Through the Ages: Role of Comedy Films in Shaping Bollywood. |
|---|---|
| Authors: | Ganjoo, Maithili1 maithili.ganjoo@gmail.com |
| Source: | Global Media Journal: Indian Edition. Jun2020, Vol. 12 Issue 1, p1-17. 17p. |
| Abstract: | This paper shows that comedy films in popular Hindi cinema are flourishing into a distinct genre' in the post-liberalisation 'Bollywood' format of Indian cinemas. Comedy films have been an integral part of Indian cinema from the beginning of its 100 years history. These films evolved through different forms like slapstick, situational comedy, farce, satire, dark comedies and in recent times successfully entered the billion-dollar box-office club in its 'Bollywoodized' avatar. This change signifies a shift in terms of the production, distribution and consumption of the comedy films. This study aims to find out how these changes are understood and interpreted by cine-goers across select cities in India and US. The study conducted using qualitative methods - the focus group discussion (FGD) to discuss and analyse select comedy films and examine the central element of the genre's - story, plot, characters, and setting. The study found that most cine-goers identified with the content of these films as these referenced to either stories and plots from memories of Yester-yearsyester-years, or their present-day aspirations and dreams. As the preference for seeking pleasure and identification with the 'feel-good' experience of watching comedy films has created comedy consumers, the genre of comedy has emerged as a preferred entertainment format not only in Bollywood but in other media as well like television, advertisements, digital and recently in the Over the Top (OTT) platforms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
| Subject Terms: | *Focus groups, *Laughter, Hindi films, Comedy films, Bollywood, Story plots |
| Geographic Terms: | India |
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| ISSN: | 22495835 |
| Database: | Communication & Mass Media Complete |
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