Page 45 - From Bombay to Bollywoord The Making of a Global Media Industri

32 << Media Industries and the State in an Era of Reform

younger sister Pooja (Kareena Kapoor) and Rahul’s nanny (Farida Jalal). A
few years later, Rahul’s younger brother Rohan learns about these incidents
and sets out to London, taking a solemn vow to reunite the family. In Lon-
don, Rohan manages to make his way into Rahul’s family under an assumed
name and with Pooja’s help, reconciles the divided family.
K3G is no different from NRI-themed films such as Dilwale Dulhania Le
Jayenge (DDLJ) and Pardes in its heavy-handed depictions of a patriarchal
family, the upholding of conservative gender norms, and conflicts surround-
ing the institution of marriage. Consider, for instance, the famous sequence
in DDLJ in which the hero (Shahrukh Khan as Raj) and heroine (Kajol as
Simran), having missed their train on a trip across Western Europe, end up
spending the night in a small town, with Simran swilling a bottle of cognac
before falling asleep. When Simran wakes up on Raj’s bed wearing his clothes,
panic-stricken and unable to recall what really happened, Raj holds her close
and growls: “You think I am beyond values, but I am a Hindustani, and I
know what a Hindustani girl’s honor (izzat) is worth. Trust me, nothing hap-
pened last night.” Vijay Mishra recounts this scene to argue that Hindi film
consumption in the diaspora speaks to first-generation Indians desperately
trying to sustain a value system and inculcate the same in their children in
order to set them apart from mainstream society in countries like the United
States and the U.K. “These differences,” Mishra writes, “are generally about
tradition, continuity, family, and often, the importance given to arranged
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marriages.” Focusing on the same sequence, Uberoi and Mankekar have
also argued that DDLJ, in spite of locating the female protagonist outside the
space of the nation, does not challenge gender norms and ends up reining
in female sexuality and “disciplining desire.” In the film, Simran refuses to
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marry Raj until her father gives his consent.
In K3G, several scenes in the Raichand family home clearly establish Yas-
hvardhan’s position as the head of the household. Once the narrative moves
to London, the role that married women are expected to play in an expatri-
ate context is also detailed in no uncertain terms. In London, Anjali is clearly
responsible for maintaining an “Indian” home, including ensuring that the
son is well-schooled in Indian traditions. In addition to performing an elabo-
rate Hindu prayer (puja) at the crack of dawn, she is ready to serve breakfast
to her husband and son. As she mills around, she begins singing a patriotic
Hindi film song, chastising her son for not being attached enough to India
(mere desh ki dharti—the land of my country, from Upkar, 1967). The scene
borders on the comical, but Anjali’s riposte to her son’s indifference to all
things Indian is telling. Turning to her husband, she retorts: “He’s already half-
English (angrez), don’t complain to me if he becomes completely English.” 24