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Stardom in Contemporary Hindi Cinema

Celebrity and Fame in Globalized Times

  • Analyzes celebrity in its global and cultural context
  • Examines how contemporary stars have advanced the global reach of Hindi films and reconfigured the meaning of popular cinema
  • Explores how filmography and autobiography intersect, and the role of the audience in constructing star identities

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Table of contents (20 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-x
  2. Introduction: Charting Stars in New Skies: Celebrity in Globalised Hindi Cinema

    • Aysha Iqbal Viswamohan, Clare M. Wilkinson
    Pages 1-12
  3. Masculinity, Celebrity, Stardom

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 13-13
    2. Saif Ali Khan: Stardom and the Alchemy of Celebrity

      • Aysha Iqbal Viswamohan, Liza Tom
      Pages 15-30
  4. The ‘Outsiders’

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 159-159
    2. The Plough and the Star: The Improbable Celebrity of Nawazuddin Siddiqui

      • Clare M. Wilkinson, Sreenidhi Krishnan
      Pages 161-181
    3. Akshay Kumar: The Khiladi of the Box Office

      • Tutun Mukherjee
      Pages 195-213
    4. Waif to Warrior—Kangana Ranaut

      • Maithili Rao
      Pages 215-228
  5. Women on Top

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 229-229
    2. Unstarry Stardom: The Making of Anushka Sharma

      • Kanupriya Dhawan, Sreenidhi Krishnan, Arpita Sinha, Clare M. Wilkinson
      Pages 231-244

About this book

In this book, film scholars, anthropologists, and critics discuss star-making in the contemporary Hindi-language film industry in India, also known as “Bollywood.” Drawing on theories of stardom, globalization, transnationalism, gender, and new media studies, the chapters explore contemporary Hindi film celebrity. With the rise of social media and India’s increased engagement in the global economy, Hindi film stars are forging their identities not just through their on-screen images and magazine and advertising appearances, but also through an array of media platforms, product endorsements, setting fashion trends, and involvement in social causes. Focusing on some of the best-known Indian stars since the late 1990s, the book discusses the multiplying avenues for forging a star identity, the strategies industry outsiders adopt to become stars, and the contradictions and conflicts that such star-making produces. It addresses questions such as: What traits of contemporarystars have contributed most to longevity and success in the industry? How has filmmaking technology and practice altered the nature of stardom? How has the manufacture of celebrity altered with the recent appearance of commodity culture in India and the rise of a hyper-connected global economy? By doing so, it describes a distinct moment in India and in the world in which stars and stardom are drawn more closely than ever into the vital events of global culture. 

Hindi films and their stars are part of the national and global entertainment circuits that are bigger and more competitive than ever. As such, this is a timely book creates opportunities for examining stardom in other industries and provides fruitful cross-cultural perspectives on star identities today.



"Grounded in rigorous scholarship as well as a palpable love of Hindi cinema, this collection of 19 essays on a dizzying array of contemporary Hindi film stars makes for an informative, thought-provoking, illuminating, and most of all, a joyful read. Pushing boundaries of not only global Star Studies but also film theory as a whole, this de-colonised and de-colonising volume is a must read for film scholars, students and cinephiles!"

Dr. Sunny Singh, Senior Lecturer - Creative Writing and English Literature, Sir John Cass School of Art, Architecture & Design, London Metropolitan University

 

“A wide-ranging overview of Hindi cinema’s filmi firmament today, focussing on its most intriguing and brightest-burning stars. The variety of approaches to stardom and celebrity by both established and upcoming scholars reveals a web of interconnecting stories and concerns that provide fascinating new insights into the workings of today's Hindi film industry, while shining fresh light on contemporary India and the world we live in.”

Professor Rosie Thomas, Centre for Research and Education in Arts and Media (CREAM), College of Design, Creativeand Digital Industries, University of Westminster



Editors and Affiliations

  • Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Madras, Chennai, India

    Aysha Iqbal Viswamohan

  • Department of Anthropology, Washington State University Vancouver, Vancouver, USA

    Clare M. Wilkinson

About the editors

Aysha Iqbal Viswamohan is a Professor of Films, Literature and Popular Culture at the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Madras, Chennai, India. Her teaching /research interests include American literature, drama, film studies, and popular culture, and she has published papers in respected journals. She has also written a number of books, including Arthur Miller: The Dramatist & His Universe (T.R. Publishers, 2005); Postliberalization Indian Novels in English (Anthem, 2013); and Behind the Scenes: Contemporary Bollywood Directors (Sage, 2017).

Clare Wilkinson is an Associate Professor at the Department of Anthropology, Washington State University Vancouver, USA, where she teaches arts and media in a global perspective; history of anthropological theory; and speech, thought, and culture. She has published articles in Ethnology, Visual Anthropology Review, Anthropological Quarterly, Ethnography, and the Journal of Material Culture. Her books include Embroidering Lives: Women’s Work and Skill in the Lucknow Embroidery Industry (SUNY Press, 1999); Fashioning Bollywood: The Making and Meaning of Costumes in the Hindi Film Industry (Bloomsbury Academic, 2014); and Critical Craft: Technology, Capitalism and Globalization (co-edited with Alicia O. DeNicola, Bloomsbury, 2016).



Bibliographic Information

  • Book Title: Stardom in Contemporary Hindi Cinema

  • Book Subtitle: Celebrity and Fame in Globalized Times

  • Editors: Aysha Iqbal Viswamohan, Clare M. Wilkinson

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-0191-3

  • Publisher: Springer Singapore

  • eBook Packages: Literature, Cultural and Media Studies, Literature, Cultural and Media Studies (R0)

  • Copyright Information: Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2020

  • Hardcover ISBN: 978-981-15-0190-6Published: 30 January 2020

  • Softcover ISBN: 978-981-15-0193-7Published: 26 August 2021

  • eBook ISBN: 978-981-15-0191-3Published: 03 January 2020

  • Edition Number: 1

  • Number of Pages: X, 324

  • Number of Illustrations: 1 b/w illustrations

  • Topics: Asian Cinema and TV, Sociology of Culture, Popular Culture

Buy it now

Buying options

eBook USD 119.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book USD 159.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book USD 159.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Other ways to access