Hindi Language Blog

The year 2010 is almost coming to a close. 2010 was a good year for Bollywood movies. Before the year ends, here are my top three favorite Bollywood movies that I think you should definitely see :

Dabangg (दबंग) which means ‘fearless’ in English, stars Bollywood star Salman Khan (सलमान ख़ान). At times the movie can be violent, but luckily there is a happy ending to the story. If you love action, good dialogue and romance, then you’ll probably like this movie. Salman Khan is very charismatic and does a good job of acting in the film.

My Name Is Khan (माय नेम इज़ ख़ान) stars successful Bollywood actor Shahrukh Khan (शाहरुख़ ख़ान). The film deals with the way Muslims are treated in the U.S. after the September 11 attacks. Shahrukh Khan plays a man with autism who goes on a mission to convince the U.S. President that he is not a terrorist. The film is heartwarming and deals with serious issues like discrimination.

I Hate Luv Storys (आई हेट लव स्टोरीस) is a romantic comedy starring Sonam Kapoor (सोनम कपूर) and Bengali actor Imran Khan. Sonam Kapoor plays a hopeless romantic while Imran Khan plays a man who doesn’t believe in love. Eventually the two fall for each other, but not without some trials and tribulations.

Indian folk dances are vibrant and celebrate the vitality of life. Indian folk dances are usually performed on special occasions like the arrival of a new season, the coming of festivals and weddings. Indian folk dances are different from Indian classical dances in that the classical dances are mostly for entertainment or aesthetic purposes. However, Indian folk dances are usually performed for a particular occasion or for practical purposes. Here are some of my favorite folk dances :

Dollu Kunitha is a folk dance from Karnataka. The dancers of dollu kunitha are talented dance artists. They carry a drum and beat the drum in a choreographed dance. The Dollu Kunitha dance is very vigorous and requires the dancers to have endurance and strength. Sometimes the dancers must lift other dancers, which require muscular strength.

Ghumura Folk Dance is a folk dance from Orissa. There are also classical dance versions of the ghumura dance, but for today we’ll just be focusing on ghumura folk dance. When the ghumura dance was first performed it was performed before a battle to raise the adrenaline of soldiers going into battle. The Ghumura folk dance includes the sheep and hen fighting dance, the cow foot dance and other dances.

Bhangra Dance is a dance from the Punjabi region. Bhangra used to be a dance performed only by men, but now it is performed by women as well. Bhangra dance is vivacious and infectious to watch. The costumes are colorful, with the men wearing a sash at the waist, a shirt called kurta and a turban on the head.  The women wear baggy pants that are tight at the ankles and a colorful shirt called kameez.

Padayani is a traditional folk dance from Kerala. Padayani is a religious dance that involves the art of storytelling and satire. The villagers perform the dance of Padayani for long life, health, wealth, and protection from evil. According to the legend, the dances were performed to pacify the goddess Deva and her lust for blood.

On one side of the coin, India is a country struggling to deal with issues of poverty and illiteracy. On the other side of the coin, India is home to many billionaires. This year Forbes Magazine has listed the top 100 richest Indians. It just goes to show that there are lots of examples of talented, established and reputable Indians. Let’s look at a few of these fascinating people of 2010 :

Mukesh Ambani is the chairman of Reliance Industries with a personal fortune estimated to be $29 billion. Mukesh Ambani wasn’t always a billionaire. He grew up modestly in a two bedroom apartment with his parents and siblings. Mukesh Ambani is the billionaire of billionaires not just in India, but in the world. At one point of his career his wealth exceeded Bill Gates!

Lakshmi Mittal is the executive of ArcelorMittal, one of the world’s largest steelmaking companies. His personal wealth is estimated to be at $28.7 billion. Lakshmi Mittal was born into a wealthy steelmaking family. He grew up to work for his family, but branched out from the family business to form his own company. Ever since then he’s been making more money than his father.

Azim Premji is the chairman of Whipro with a fortune of $17 billion. He is my personal favorite billionaire because he is known for his humble lifestyle. Despite having so much money he drives a Toyota Corolla and has a foundation in his name called The Azim Premji Foundation. The Foundation tries to solve some of the social problems that plague Indian society.

Savitri Jindal is India’s richest woman with her net worth totaling $12.2 billion. She has also dabbled in politics to take the place of her husband’s position as Minister of Power when he died in a helicopter crash. Before her husband’s death Savitri Jindal was content to be a stay-at-home wife and mother, but after her husband’s death she has made more public appearances.

Anil Ambani is the younger brother of Mukesh Ambani. His personal fortune is calculated to be at $13.7 billion. Anil Ambani’s life has been a source of tabloid fodder. His clashes with his brother, links to Bollywood actresses, a rumored assassination attempt and a big loss of $32.5 billion in the recession of 2008 have kept him in the constant spotlight.