I've a confession to make. I am hooked on Korean movies. So are thousands in Mizoram, Manipur. Well basically the complete of Northeast India. I've heard it's way more in countries like Myanmar (Burma), Thailand, Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Vietnam, Indonesia, China, Taiwan, Philippines, etc.
It has been some time now since I watched my first Korean movie - it absolutely was My Sassy Girl. (Incidentally, My Sassy Girl was the most popular and exportable Korean film in the history Korean film industry in accordance with Wikipedia. So popular so it outsold The Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter which ran at the same time. Dramacool It sold 4,852,845 tickets!) Which was around couple of years ago. By now I've watched scores of them - Windstruck, Sex is Zero (Korean version of American Pie?), My Wife is just a Gangster 1, 2 & 3, The Classic, Daisy, A Moment to Remember, Joint Security Area, My Little Bride, A Dirty Carnival, You're my Sunshine, Silmido, etc to mention but a few!
I am completely totally hooked!
Whenever a friend first invited me to watch My Sassy Girl I was frankly unsure if I'd enjoy it. However the spunky, don't-care-a-damn-tomboy heroine for the reason that movie made me fall deeply in love with Korean movies (and soaps even!). It's not particularly surprising in my experience that I fell deeply in love with Korean movies considering the fact I love French movies. Korean movies have the same treatment of these subjects that way of French movies. I regularly watch TV5 French movies and Arirang TV whenever my cableguy allows me! Of course different genre of movies provide you with a different perspective on Korean movies. I do believe comedy is where Korean movies would be the best.
Now the Korean movies and soaps, as I've said, are very popular in the Northeastern states of India. Even in New Delhi there's a movie library or two where you are able to get Korean movies. You may be sure I am a regular! In a more severe note, the question is why... why do the northeasterners love Korean movies?? Despite decades of Hindustanization with Bollywood, Hindi lessons and Indian politics are we somewhat wanting for HOME!
It's really good to see one of your personal (read chinkies?) on the screen after so many decades of it being filled by the Amitabhs and the Khans and the Roshans of Bollywood. Korean dramas are such as for instance a breath of outdoors after so much stale Bollywood movies which I seldom watch except for Ram Gopal Verma movies. The intricate plots of twists and turns and a whole lot more urbane emotions are what attracted me to Korean and French movies. Maybe, just might be, race does have a role here. Being racially similar, our habits and cultural nuances are very similar! Their body language and facial expressions are very similar to the expressions. The rather alien Punjabi or Bihari nuances of Bollywood deters me from so many good movies!
Korean movies are also technically more advanced than Bollywood movies and can even contend with Hollywood movies. Awards and recognition even in the Cannes Film Festival are becoming an annual occurrence for the Korean film industry. Actually Hollywood biggies Dreamworks has paid $2 million (US) for a remake of the 2003 suspense thriller Janghwa, Hongryeon (A Tale of Two Sisters) compare that to $1 million (US) paid for the proper to remake the Japanese movie The Ring.
It's true that we, Northeasterners, love everything that is new to the culture unlike our mainland Indians. We actually welcome change and changed we're to an extent. We effortlessly copy the western style of dressing jeans, T-shirts and et al. That may be another reason for our recent addiction with Korean movies. But somehow I doubt that it is a passing thing like teenage love affair. It has cultural affinity overtones written around it. Bollywood will have to counter this onslaught of Korean movies with increased Chak De characters! It has already lost much audience to Korean film industry.
Several weeks back whilst having a chit-chat about our lives in New Delhi - the awkward stares, the down right patronising calling of names and the abuses in workplaces - with a pal of mine he remarked,"Are we in the incorrect country?" ;."Are you going to be happy if you are treated such as for instance a guest in your country?" asks one of the two Northeast characters in Chak De India. For me it's bearable with the aid of movies like My Sassy Girl and the like from our kin Korean film industry. Laugh your heart out and your investment troubles of this country until, of course, Chak De India has bigger roles for Northeasterners!
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