Loading ...Watch Amitabh and Jaya Bachchan who joined their daughter- in- law Aishwarya during the premier of ‘Vickey Cristina Barcelona’ at 61st International Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, France.
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Bollywood may have gone global off-late with Indian production companies teaming up with Hollywood directors but that has little changed the fate of its women in contemporary times.
And before you attribute the phenomenon to our scriptwriters and directors, let us tell you that even off-screen, only a handful of our actresses have ventured into the business arena, leave alone their filmi avatars which is restricted to Bips’ character in ‘Corporate’ and will be replicated by Ash in ‘Sarkar Raj’.
At 61st annual Cannes Film Festival bollywood queen Aishwarya Rai arrived on red carpet along with Eva Longoria and Mischa Barton for the premiere of new Julianne Moore flick “Blindness”. Check out aishwarya rai’s latest photographs.
Well, the 1973 Rishi-Dimple starrer has a distinction to its credit. It was perhaps the first film to start merchandising its products the hair clips and pins worn by Dimple Kapadia could be bought by fans.
The concept of Bollywood merchandising has come a long way since then. The latest film to have marketed its products is Ashutosh Gowariker’s magnum opus Jodhaa Akbar whose main characters would be reproduced as toys by a leading toy maker. Besides toys, other merchandise includes jewellery, coffee mugs, sports items, stationery, curios, mobile ring tones, vehicles, food, beauty products, toiletries, bath items and apparel.
The movie credited with popularising merchandising is Sooraj Barjatya’s Maine Pyar Kiya (1989) - the ‘Friend’ cap featured in it sold like hot pancakes. Another Barjatya blockbuster, Hum Aapke Hain Kaun also did brisk business, with Madhuri Dixit’s purple sari becoming a craze. Films that have merchandised successfully of late include Bhoot, Fanaa, Goal, Hum Tum, Main Prem Ki Diwani Hoon, Saawariya, Om Shanti Om, Na Tum Jaano Na Hum, Koi Mil Gaya and Krrish.
So, why are filmmakers increasingly venturing into merchandising? Firstly, it adds up to the profits. Also, by flooding the market with movie-centric products, the movie gets more visibility. As Ram Kamal Mukherjee, VP, Pritish Nandy Communications explains, “Merchandising is a tool for the filmmaker to keep his film alive in public memory. It’s all about providing something different, a unique product to the customer.
Bollywood memorabilia or merchandising has a lot to do with how retail functions. Till now, it was marginalised. There were thousands of outlets and negotiating with them was a very tedious process. Now, with major retail outlets replacing the numerous others, distribution and placement becomes easier,” says Ravi Gupta from a premier production house.
What will Aishwarya Rai wear down the red carpet at this year’s Cannes Film Festival? Ever since she arrived by horse drawn carriage, dressed in a stunning yellow dress for the premiere of her film Devdas in 2002, Rai’s annual presence at the festival has added a unique Bollywood hue to the red carpet proceedings. Last year, my heart skipped a beat when Rai arrived decked in a white gown with her new husband Abhishek Bachchan on display.
Her choice of apparel has always created waves. In 2003, the Armani-clad Rai was the first Indian actor to sit on the prestigious judges’ panel and the following year, decked in Chopard and a Neeta Lulla skimpy white dress, she made spectators gasp in awe. Black was her colour of choice in 2005 and she arrived hand in hand with fellow L’Oreal brand ambassador Andie MacDowell in 2006. This year Rai will be there again: she is contractually bound by L’Oreal to appear.
Rai, hubby Abhishek and father in law, Amitabh Bachchan will be in town and will probably stay at the Martinez Hotel where they stayed last year. The trio’s latest film, Sarkar Raj, the sequel to Sarkar which is based on The Godfather, will enjoy an out of competition premiere.
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