Tell any thirty plus, green tea slurping, traffic irked taxi driver across China that you’re from India and he’ll almost spontaneously chant out ‘Awara Hoon Mein’ or ‘Jimmy jimmy.. ajaa ajaa’.
Tell any thirty plus, green tea slurping, traffic irked taxi driver across China that you’re from India and he’ll almost spontaneously chant out ‘Awara Hoon Mein’ or ‘Jimmy jimmy.. ajaa ajaa’. Tell any high school or college going chap that you’re from India and he’ll immediately tell you ‘All is well!’ And not to miss, the middle-aged ladies in China’s city squares doing their evening dance to the peppy number ‘Zoobie Doobie’ with the entire nation gyrating to it’s tunes.
A common perception in modern China is that India is a colorful country where everybody sings and dances. With magical backdrops, catchy songs, colorful clothes and action packed, dramatic scenes, Indian films transport the Chinese away from their mundane lives into a magical, bubble-gummy world where a rich girl can marry a poor boy, good always conquers evil, money isn’t everything and love reunites all. 
Speaking of the popularity of Indian films in China, lets learn more about the man who is currently on a row with the success of his recent film ‘Dangal’: Aamir Khan!
Aamir Khan is a famous Indian actor, producer, and director of Indian films (Bollywood) who is regarded as one of the finest actors and youth icons in India. He belongs to a Muslim family, which for an extensive period of time has been associated with the Indian film industry. His father was a renowned producer of Hindi movies. At the same time, his uncle was a renowned film producer, actor, and director. He began his journey as an actor when he was just a child.
The majority of films in which he’s acted have been commercial successes and grossed big revenues. He has won almost 54 awards till now.
Talking of his popularity in China, his film ‘3-idiots’ has been greatly admired.
What was so special about this movie that it instantly clicked with the Chinese audience? I asked various native friends & colleagues and what I found was that the education and family system in China is radically similar to that of India (as depicted in the film), with Parents being heavily invested, financially and emotionally, in their children’s schooling, and the mental pressure a student has to go through in order to be a part of the education & employment system’s rat race that they need to win at any cost.
The film struck an instant chord with China’s famously overworked students, so much so that some Chinese universities were, last year, even prescribing the film in their coursework as a kind of a stress-buster in their classrooms.
Aamir Khan’s recent film ‘Dangal’ has become the highest grossing Indian movie in China, making more than 100 million yuan ($145,000) in just 4 days of its release. Aamir Khan plays the role of a doting father who broke gender barriers and taught wrestling to his 2 girls in a conventional Indian setting in which girls are supposed to grow up only to get married and make a family.
This film is based on a true story about the lives of 2 sisters who make a career out of wrestling in which, the elder ones becomes the first female wrestler to win gold at the 2010 Commonwealth Games and the younger one becomes a silver medalist.
Thousands of Weibo users are found discussing ‘Dangal’, making it the talk of the town, especially Aamir Khan’s acting. The film is rated 9.2 out of 10 by the movie watchers on Douban, a well-established film review website in China.
The only other movie that has come close to the success of Dangal & 3 Idiots is another one of Aamir Khan’s: Lagaan, which connected with the Hong Kong and China audience because of its freedom struggle against the British rule. It was nominated for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 74th Oscar Awards.
Aamir Khan is said to be the actor who first started the trend of actors working in one film at a time, when the others worked in four or five at the same time. He is said to be a ‘perfectionist’ and believes in giving his 100% to the film. His ability to portray different characters believably on screen is commendable.
Today he is regarded as not only one of the biggest Superstars but also one of the finest actors of Indian Cinema. Being an Indian myself, I feel utmost pride and pleasure in writing about a fellow Indian who has done such prodigious work and has represented his country globally.
