Singapore Bollywood Theatre Analysis

All these observations point towards the fact that Bollywood cinema-goers are an active audience. The people react immediately to specific elements in the film, at certain junctures. There is audience involvement as viewers clap, laugh, take sides and even engage in deep discussions about certain aspects of the film. Srinivas (2002) describes this as participatory viewing, as the audience does not just passively consume what is presented to them, but rather each viewer takes the film and makes it his/her own by reacting and responding differently and to varying extents. This sort of participatory viewing also makes the experience of watching the movie in the theatre more engaging for all. Personally for me, watching a Bollywood movie in Singapore

Firstly, the film itself acts as a source of connection to India for the diasporic audience. It allows people to know about the recent happenings, back in their homeland. It also reminds them of the familiar sights and sounds of the home, which they left behind. Beyond the film, the space, setting and atmosphere at the movie theatre, facilitate the formation of an Indian cultural identity. Going to the theatre to watch a Bollywood film also means, meeting fellow Indians. On top of the group that one is going with, for example family or Indian friends, there are also other Indians in the movie theatre. Bollywood cinema-going brings people together and becomes a reason for Indians to gather in a single space. Like I mentioned earlier, there were so many Indians congregating in the foyer of the movie theatre that it did not even feel like a place in Singapore anymore. This close proximity with many fellow Indians helps one reassert his/her Indian identity. Moreover, the unique characteristic of participatory viewing, among the Indian audience, helps build a community in the process of watching a film. The communal experience of watching and enjoying a Hindi film, together with many other Indians, enhances one’s own feeling of being an Indian. On the whole, while the film and its content help to maintain Indian cultural identity among the people, the gathering of Indians and

Definitely the movie viewers in Singapore were also active, as they laughed, clapped and discussed about the movie. However, the reactions came with a little bit of hesitation. According to Srinivas (2002), the cinema-goers in India shout out responses to onscreen dialogues and even loudly repeat the “punch-line” in the film. The viewers in India tend to be more expressive and have no inhibitions when they react to features in the film. However, in Singapore, the expressions are more subdued. When people laugh or talk, they do so softly and quietly, trying to be “considerate” to other viewers in the cinema hall. Moreover, in India, audience movement during the film is much greater. During the film, the viewers get up and go outside if they are uninterested during song and dance sequences and take their restless children outside (Srinivas, 2002). There is also an intermission, which is a 10-15 minutes break, at the half-way mark of the film. At this time, some people leave the cinema hall to go get a drink or snack. In Singapore, there was no intermission. Furthermore, throughout the entire course of the film barely anyone left their seats. There seemed to be some sort of compulsion among the audience to avoid unnecessary movement, while watching the Bollywood film. Vandevelde, Meers, Van Bauwel, & Winkel (2015) have described this as the “enthusiasm