Asia Abridged Podcast: Is Indian Film Asia’s Next Big Cultural Export?

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India’s film industry — particularly Bollywood films— has entertained the South Asian subcontinent for nearly a century. Often recognized by its lively song and dance numbers, Bollywood has begun to gain international recognition, influencing the occasional Hollywood film and allowing Bollywood stars to make the transition to international projects. 

But India's film industry has much more to offer than just singing and dancing. Can the industry reach the level of international cultural influence the way Chinese big-budget action movies or Korean television dramas have?

In this episode of Asia Abridged, Indian filmmakers Kabir Khan and Visheh Bhatt, managing director of streaming platform Hooq Zulfiqar Khan, and Indian action star Anil Kapoor discuss what previously held the industry back and how changes in distribution, technology, and filmmaking, have pushed Indian film and television in front of new viewers in India and around the world.