Show Business (1992)
| Author | Shashi Tharoor |
|---|---|
| Country | India |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Parody, Satirical, Postmodern novel with elements of Roman à clef, |
| Publisher | Penguin Books India |
|
Publication date
|
1991 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 310 pp (first edition, paperback) |
| ISBN | (first edition, paperback) |
| OCLC | 426050815 |
| Preceded by | The Great Indian Novel(1989) |
| Followed by | Riot (2001) |
Show Business is a postmodern satirical novel by Shashi Tharoor.
Show Business parodies and satirises formulaic Bollywood cinema, using it as a metaphor in an attempt to raise and answer questions about contemporary India and Indians. It is a fictional work that tells the story of Ashok Banjara, a Bollywood superstar. Ashok Banjara is critically injured while shooting for a film and his entire life in Bollywood flashes in front of his eyes as he lies suspended between life and death in a hospital. The character and many incidents of Ashok Banjara's life are inspired by that of Amitabh Bachchan, the biggest superstar in Bollywood's history.
The novel describes the working of Bollywood (India's Hindi film industry) and the career of a fictional superstar in this "Showbusiness." The author has explained in numerous interviews that the title refers not only to Bollywood but also to politics (which the protagonist joins) and to religion (as practised by one of the characters, a Guru to the stars), both of which are also forms of "show business", selling illusions to the public.
Show Business begins with Ashok Banjara, a superstar in Bollywood, fighting for his life in the intensive care unit of a hospital after an accident on the sets of a film that he is shooting. Suspended between life and death he sees his entire life in Bollywood flashing in front of his eyes like a film. Details of Banjara's career in Bollywood are revealed primarily in flashback.
A young Ashok Banjara leaves Delhi and comes to Bombay to make his fortune and find fame in Bollywood. He achieves the big league with his second film Godambo that establishes him as an action star. Soon Banjara is known for playing the role of an angry young man fighting for the poor and the helpless against the establishment. A successful Ashok Banjara marries Maya, a talented co-star and convinces her to stay away from films for the sake of family. Banjara, though is something of a philanderer, bedding most of his heroines. The actress Mehnaz Elahi becomes his mistress.
At the pinnacle of his success as a Bollywood star, Banjara is enticed to join politics and he wins the election easily (from his politician father's constituency). However to his dismay he finds that the party has no significant role for him and he languishes in the back benches in the parliament. Meanwhile Banjara makes a film, Mechanic. This film is Banjara's first flop.
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