Bollywood movies typically have not been very successful in China as indicated by past records. But one actor discovered the potential of the Chinese market and decided to leverage its potential to the fullest. He is none other than our very own Mr. Perfectionist, Aamir Khan.
Image Credit: Movie – Dangal
The trend of liking Bollywood movies started from 3 idiots as the movie did exceptionally well in China but the movie Dangal was the one that actually opened the doors of China for Bollywood. Shuai Jiao Baba (Let’s Wrestle, Dad) the Chinese version of Dangal seems to have earned twice the combined earnings of the movie in India and worldwide. The reason for such a phenomenal success could have been that the Chinese could relate to the movie and the culture. There is also a preference for boys in the country after Mao’s one-child policy and so this movie which is all about girl-power was bound to do phenomenally well.
Image Credit: Movie – Secret Superstar, Star Wars: The Last Jedi
Another Aamir Khan movie named Secret Superstar earned $117.7 million beating Disney’s Star Wars: The Last Jedi in China. Bollywood has a limited market in the world unlike Hollywood and success in the world’s second-largest film market by value is a very good prospect for the Indian film industry. Even Salman Khan’s Bajrangi Bhaijaan and Prabhas’ Baahubali 2 have been well received by the Chinese Audience.
Image Credit: globaltimes.cn
The biggest boost to Bollywood movies was the declaration of Chinese President Xi Jinping who wanted more Bollywood movies to come to China and vice versa. After the recent informal summit between Chinese president and the Indian prime minister, the two countries have discussed collaborations in several areas like technology, trade, and even movies. Xi even said that he watched Aamir Khan’s Dangal and really liked it. Due to the phenomenal success of his movies, India is planning to appoint Aamir Khan as the brand ambassador to boost trade between the two countries.
Seeing the interest of the people and the President we can safely assume that Bollywood has golden days ahead in China but for that we have to start smart filmmaking because there is a reason mostly Aamir Khan movies could work well in a market that was not very open to Bollywood earlier and so if as an industry we have to establish our stronghold then the filmmakers have to take it seriously.
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