DesiDabba - Boss, Thoda Sa Roomani Ho Jaye

Even though Bollywood continues to rule the Indian Entertainment market however one cannot ignore the consistently growing, Bhojpuri film industry. Currently Bhojpuri films cater to roughly 200m viewers and are primarily aimed at those who speak the Bhojpuri language and live in states of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.

Besides the participation of well-known Bollywood celebrities in Bhojpuri films, another reason behind its sudden growth – is the arrival of non-filmy investors. Since Hindi films require mega-budgets, superstars and also the chances of complete recovery are bare minimum therefore investing in this alternate film industry looks to be a viable option. Also many (new) producers use Bhojpuri films as a stepping stone towards their final goal i.e. Bollywood, in terms of experience, investment and familiarity.

So simple it is these days to make a Bhojpuri film that any Tom, Dick or Harry can jump in without much effort – the only requirement being – money.

For example,

Just the other day I found out that one of my society uncle (who had experienced sudden cash fall via his scrap selling business, in the recent years) has turned to financing Bhojpuri films. For his forthcoming film he has signed the likes of Manoj Tiwari and Bollywood’s one hit-wonder babe, Bhagyashri. And for the funniest bit, the film also marks the debuts of his driver and house cook in rather substantial roles.

On hearing the above news, the very first thought that crossed my mind was one of the episodes from Jaspal Bhatti’s fantabulous show titled “The Flop Show”. You know the one on “TV Serial” where Jaspal Bhatti who is a halwai by profession decides to take a plunge in to the Television Industry despite lacking all the qualities necessary in a tele-producer.

The one quality that amazes me the most about this particular episode is not the acting, (I mean come on who can dare refute the fact that the Flop Show gang completely rocked) but its execution – right from the screenplay to dialogues to each and every character depiction. Agreed Mr. Bhatti’s early 1990s version is slightly on the exaggerated side however its relevance even in today’s entertainment scenario cannot be denied.

So if you deep down aspire to enter the film-making business then why not start with Bhojpuri films – believe me, it’s really that easy.

And for fun-unlimited, take a look at Flop Show’s episode “TV Serial” on YouTube.