Blog: Have you ever wanted to be a movie star? 
By IndiaFM News Bureau, July 23, 2007 - 09:30 IST
Well it could be much easier then you think. Instead of dreaming Hollywood, try dreaming Bollywood. Bollywood is the movie making craze centered in Bombay and Chennai India that produces more movies each year than even Hollywood. Last summer while in India my dreams finally came true when one early morning walking bleary eyed through the streets a little frantic man ran up to me yelling, “Movie, movie, you want movie?”
This early? I thought, they really have no limits to their selling, but suddenly he said those magical words,
“No, you want to be in a movie?”
I yelled, “lets go,” and within 3 minutes I was flying down the Indian highway helmetlessly on the back of a speeding motorcycle trying to catch up to a minivan with a couple of other actors.
You see, in Bollywood with over 750 movies being produced each year, they are in desperate need for foreign actors who can serve extras in background scenes or serve in the participate in the most prized Bollywood dancing scenes. There are even some expats which simply live on the cheap and then go acting a few times a week to make a little extra cash.
My experience sounded pretty typical. My dreams of glamour were quickly crushed as I was thrown clothes and told to change right in the middle of a busy field. The director was obviously not impressed by my backpacker appearance and ordered me to be dry shaven right in the middle of the field. To top off all of this humiliation, we were forced to sit in full suits in 45 degree Celsius weather for over 10 hours before our scene came up. All this for a whopping $10, all the curry you could eat, and the joy being in the Bollywood blockbuster GURU.
So are you interested? If you happen to be in India, make sure you go to Bombay and just hang around the foreigner catering areas. Within a day or so you'll probably be approached by a scout and make sure you get at least $10 for you work, but you could negotiate up to $20. If for some reason your having trouble, just make it known to the guest house keeper that you want to be in a movie and they'll be sure to find you one (as they receive a finding fee).
Just think when your old and shriveled, leaning against your nightly bar, you can always tell your bar mate next to you, “You know…I was a Bollywood movie star…how about you buy me a drink.”
Michale's blog can be accessed at http://traveling-stories-magazine.com/
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Disclaimer: The opinions expressed herein or statements made in the above column are solely those of the blogger, and do not necessarily reflect the views of IndiaFM. IndiaFM accepts no legal liability or responsibility for any claims made or opinions expressed herein
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