DEGRADED 16MM BOLLYWOOD TRAILERS FROM THE 1980'S
found footage, India, approx 2 hrs 30 min
16mm, 1:1.33, colour, mono, Hindi
background information
In 2006 I bought a whole suitcase of 16mm film rolls from Chor Bazaar, the amazing second-hand market in Mumbai. Most of the 50 rolls turned out to be trailers of B-grade Bollywood films from the 1980's. They were all in really bad shape, covered with dust and full of scratches, the film emulsions coming off and they had an intense stench of fungus and vinegar. So I took them home to Berlin, gave them chemical and ultrasonic treatment and restored whatever was left afterwards. What came out of all of this, was a compressed essence of Masala Cinema: A dense genre mix, spiced up with dazzling motion graphics, crude edits and rhythmic emulsion distortions added on top. A true Cinema of Interruptions. The great thing is that many of these B-grade films challenge the traditional Bollywood gender clichés by featuring female heroes, transsexuals and crossdressers galore.
how to book:
The uploaded video contains only five trailers out of a total of 42. The duration of all the trailers adds up to two-and-a-half hours. The trailers can be projected on any occasion--film screenings, parties etc--and in any format, 16mm or digital. If you're interested in showing the trailers at your event, please get in touch with me:
nomasala [at] gmail [dot] com
+49 172 3947635
