My exposure has been somewhat limited, but here's a particular favorite:
Yep, nothing says wacky Bollywood hijinx quite like the 70s classic
Amar, Akbar, Anthony. It's the saga of three brothers who are seperated as children after their father is shafted by the smuggler he works for. One is raised Hindi, one Moslem, and one Christian. Later in life they're reunited and fall in love with beautiful women who just happen to be engaged to the bastards who did their family wrong. This is a comedy, but there's also plenty of romance, drama, action, and what have you, and the lost-and-found family angle works nicely.
This has what may well be my favorite musical sequence of all time, featuring the song "My Name Is Anthony". There's a swinging dance party being held to celebrate Easter, which means there's a giant egg in the middle of the room. Anthony, dressed in an elaborate suit and top hat, steps out of the egg and proceeds to sing a song about how all the women in the room should hook up with him. In particular, he repeatedly sings his room number - 420 - and macks on the woman he is destined to fall in love with, in between pratfalls:
Too bad she's there with one of the bad guy thugs, resulting in a particularly amusing fist fight at the end of the song. It's astounding, and Amitabh Bachchan is incredible as Anthony.
This was broadcast not too long ago on Turner Classic Movies, so keep an eye out for a re-broadcast. Meanwhile, you can go buy a cut-rate bootleg DVD from your local Indian grocery store:
I have the copy you see there. It's pretty good, with one notable exception - the songs are not subtitled. This isn't the end of the world, but there are significant chunks of the film that don't make a helluva lot of sense without 'em, as the characters are singing about plot details, mixed in with some really great gags.
Still, as long as you get to see this flick one way or the other, it's all good. Highly recommended!
FnordChan
