The Great Escape.(film industry in India)(Brief Article)

As religious violence roiled India last month, one of the country's biggest film stars, Aamir Khan, was walking up a red-carpeted runway in Los Angeles to take his seat at the Academy Awards. Khan, a 36-year-old heartthrob, had received an Oscar nomination in the best-foreign-film category for "Lagaan," a historical song-and-dance epic in which he is both star and producer. It was India's first nomination in 14 years, so the entire nation celebrated his achievement with patriotic fervor, even when he didn't get the Oscar. The one thing that mattered least: the fact that Khan is Muslim. "Who cares if he's Muslim?" says Arun Parmar, a Hindu merchant in Mumbai, moments after ranting about the "dirty" Muslims who live next door. "He's a great actor, and besides, my wife thinks he's sexy."

Escapism has always been the prime ingredient in Indian cinema. In a land of numbing poverty and arranged marriages, India's prolific film industry--Bollywood--is known for serving up a fantasy world of unfettered romance, sumptuous parties and Julie Andrews-style romps through mountain meadows. But Bollywood has also managed to escape another reality: the boiling tension between Hindus and Muslims. While Muslims seem marginalized in other parts of Indian society, they're center stage in Bollywood--and in the hearts of India's largely Hindu film audiences. Four of India's movie idols are Muslim (including rising female star Tabu). So, too, are several ...