It's been a few years since I discovered the first Bollywood film that sparked the love I have for the Bollywood film industry. I've watched countless films with different Bollywood actors and actresses and fell in love with their talents and the stories behind their characters. Just in looking at a typical American film, and then at a Bollywood film, there is a noticeable difference in the sexual appeal between the two industries. The sexual appeal is clearly in both of the film industries.
Bollywood is very subtle when it comes to sex and hanky-panky in their films. And although subtle, it's undeniably powerful. The emotion in the eyes of the actress, Deepika Padukone (the goddess here in the two gifs), is so alluring and mesmerizing. Her emotions are clear — you can recognize them just by looking at her eyes. The eyes say have it! In my opinion, it's so powerful and moving seeing that emotion clearly depicted on the face and in the eyes.
The sexual appeal I've seen in Bollywood films are the passionate embraces, some steamy kisses, and the powerful emotion of passion in the eyes of many actresses and actors. But honestly, that is the perfect amount!
This gif (above) is so beautiful! The way she looks up is just so powerful because her eyes are filled with love and passion toward whoever she is looking at across the room. And, *spoiler alert*, she is looking toward the man she loves in the movie, "Ram-Leela," which is a Bollywood version of "Romeo and Juliet."
The clothes that the Bollywood actresses wear on the red carpet are conservative compared to some, but equally glamorous and sexy. They truly value themselves rather than exposing their bodies to the tabloid photographers in order to be talked about. I mean, yes, they do expose some of their torsos in their saris, but that's really all. However, they show a sense of pride, cherishing their country by wearing the traditional clothes they've worn during their lifetime.
Here is a comparison of red carpet/awards show gowns and saris the celebrities wear in Bollywood and Hollywood.
The sex appeal in America is vastly different from Bollywood's. The gowns we see our American celebrities wear are a good example of this difference. They either have sheer fabric paneling over certain areas of the body, a "thigh slit" that reveals much more than just the thigh, or a plunging neckline down to the belly button. In America exposing more of their body translates as sexy.
In films, we often see an actress exposing their bodies in a little bikini, their underwear, or in a gorgeous (yet risky) evening gown — but they still bring strong movie roles to their fullest. Here we see Alice Eve from "Star Trek: Into Darkness" stripped down to her underwear, but she still plays a powerful role in the film. Again, the sex appeal here is, quite obviously, the actress in her underwear when she was talking to Captain Kirk (Chris Pine).
However, I feel that Bollywood films are not recognized as much as they should be. I'm pretty sure that the only Bollywood film someone my age would think of off the top of their head would be "Slumdog Millionaire". However, we also have the film "Mistress of Spices", which is a blend of Bollywood and Hollywood just like "Slumdog Millionaire.I "
In the end, Bollywood films are vastly different from the Hollywood films we have grown up to recognize. However, I think Bollywood films are unique in how they display sexuality, and they definitely deserve more attention and recognition than they receive. They light up the screen again and again, simply by how the cast brings the plot to life through music, more conservative dress, and a heightened sense of emotion.
