4086 - Bollywood as Global Popular Culture
Course Description
This five-week course will offer a critical introduction to the global dissemination, prominence and influence of Hindi language commercial films, commonly known as “Bollywood.” While India is the world’s largest producer of films with nearly a thousand films in multiple languages being released every year, the tongue-in-cheek, derivative coinage “Bollywood” denotes a substantial number of these movies that are made in studios across the city of Mumbai (formerly Bombay). Starting in the 1990s, however, this century-old ‘national cinema’ has increasingly made its presence felt in theaters, film festivals, award ceremonies and most importantly, among audiences across the globe.
This course will explore salient aspects of cultural globalization that drive the production, circulation and consumption of these so-called ‘song and dance’ films that challenge expectations of cinematic form, stardom and fandom on the one hand while engaging with ideas of nationalism, diaspora and soft power on the other. By the end of the course students will have a working sense of "Bollywood" as a conceptual category for understanding contemporary global popular culture. We will watch at least two films a week and read secondary texts ranging from film theory to anthropological accounts to cultural analyses. Students are expected to produce short, regular reviews and responses to the films and readings and complete an optional final project. All films will be made available via Panopto on the Canvas course site. Additional short term subscriptions for Netflix and Amazon Video are encouraged but not required.
Learner Outcomes
Following completion of this course, you should be able to:
- Students will develop an in depth understanding of the notion of 'popular culture' i.e. commercial objects (art, films, music, literature etc.) produced for mass consumption;
- Students will become familiar with the cinematic imagination, production, distribution and reception practices of the Hindi language film industry;
- Students will learn about the many dimensions of 'Bollywood' as a film aesthetic, a trans/national cinema, and an influential global cultural phenomenon.
Notes
For RISD Students:
RISD Continuing Education (CE) credit is treated as transfer credit by RISD’s undergraduate degree programs. If approved, satisfactory completion of this course with a ‘C’ or better can count as 3 transfer credits toward Literary Arts and Studies (LAS) or Liberal Arts Elective (LAEL) elective requirements. Complete the Prior Approval for Liberal Arts Credit form in etrieve before completing the online course registration.
Students from institutions other than RISD:
Students seeking academic credits are urged to contact their home institution to arrange prior approval before registering. Policies on transfer credit vary by institution and by program, and it is at the discretion of your home institution to determine what credits it will accept and how they might meet individual academic requirements.
For additional information about RISD Summer Intensives and Transfer Credit Policies, visit our webpage.
Prerequisites
Students must be an adult age 18 or older to participate.