Laughter and parody for Bollywood buffs

Malegaon: Past a narrow alleyway filled with sleeping goats, water tanks and women washing clothes, Shaikh Nasser's modest home is a landmark. This is where he thinks up new ways to make the people of this grim textile town laugh.

Nasser is the father of a homegrown film industry that is famous for its parodies of blockbuster movies from Bollywood. For Malegaon's power-loom workers and others labouring long hours for low pay, his wild and wacky movies provide some relief from bleak lives interrupted by frequent sectarian clashes and bomb blasts.

"There is no other entertainment in our town. We are mad about movies. After 14 hours of backbreaking work in power looms daily, the workers want to wear wings and fly," Naser said. "My parodies help them escape."

The film industry in Malegaon is made up of half a dozen directors who pick famous movies, tweak the plots and pepper them with local images and idioms. For actors and technicians, the directors make do with moonlighting weavers, teachers, pharmacists, carpenters, plumbers and wedding-video makers.

Small town dreams

Although it may lack Bollywood's flair and flamboyance, the quirky world of Malegaon's movies reflects the enduring influence of the cinema on the Indian sensibility and, in particular, on the dreams of its small towns. But the people of Malegaon take their passion for the movies a step further — colouring their remakes with their own lives. Their irreverent caricatures also subvert the commercial dynamic of Bollywood.

"It is a place where violence and horror and danger coexist with such a wonderful sense of irony and humour," Bollywood scriptwriter Sridhar Raghavan said. "The films are a real labour of love by people who really care for the original films. It is not spoof by any standard — homage would be a better word."

Malegaon's movies are made on a dirt-cheap budget of about $1,000 (Dh3,673); the Bollywood originals can cost nearly 2,000 times as much. Nasser shoots with a Panasonic Handycam, a crane shot is usually mounted on a bullock cart, and a bicycle is used for a trolley.

Malegaon's film journey began in 1999 with Naser's hilarious remake of the iconic 1975 Indian bandit movie Sholay. Nasser called it Malegaon ke Sholay, or "Malegaon's Sholay".

But his bandits, instead of riding horses, appear on bicycles, and references abound to local cigarette brand wars, restaurants, factories and snippets of local lore. The movie was a runaway hit and brought the town its first dose of fame.

But with this year's Malegaon ka Superman, at $2,000 the most expensive remake, the little industry may be poised for bigger things. Last month, a film on the making of the Superman satire won the jury award for best documentary feature at the Asiatica Film Mediale, Italy's annual Asian film festival.

"This is the first time I am taking on Hollywood. I hope to get overseas rights for my Superman film," Nasser said with a dimpled smile. "There are many flying scenes. When my Superman flies, Malegaon will fly, too."