Are Indian films becoming more mainstream

A.� The Bollywood film industry seems to be on the brink of mainstream success with the film Lagaan, a period drama which has given Hindi films a huge boost in the UK. The producers of Lagaan, the first Hindi-language film to enter the British top 10, will follow the worldwide success of the Mandarin Chinese hit, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.

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Q.� What is the film about

A.� Lagaan has a cricket theme and is set during the British Raj. It cost over �4 million to make, making it one of the most expensive films ever made in India. The film opened in London last month�with a huge advertising campaign aimed at non-Asian filmgoers.

SInce it opened, it has taken more than �300,000, and differs from the usual Bollywood story, featuring star-crossed lovers or a family tragedy.

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It is a historical tale set in 1893. Lagaan is Hindi for land tax, and the film relates the hardships of a village forced to pay land tax to the British Raj after years of drought. They appeal to the local British administrator, played by actor Paul Blackthorne, and he agrees to waive the tax for three years if they can beat a British team at cricket - a game the villagers have never seen. The film climaxes in a crucial match.

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Q.� Where was it shot

A.� It was shot almost entirely on location in a remote part of Gujarat, and was completed in one continuous schedule so none of the actors could work on other projects.

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Q.� Who is the most famous Indian actor

A.� Legendary star Amitabh Bachchan became the first Bollywood wax figure at Madame Tussaud's recently. He also beat Lawrence Olivier and Alec Guinness in a recent BBC online poll to find the best actor of the millennium. He was the swashbuckling hero of more than 100 films in the 1970s and 1980s, and was called India's first 'angry young man' -�playing violent anti-heroes. Sharukh Khan, star of Bollywood films such as Karan Arjun and Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, was voted the most handsome man of the 20th century by the India Times.

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For more information on Bollywood releases click on to www.planetbollywood.com

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For more film and television questions and answers, click here

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By Katharine MacColl