Superheroes unlimited

Since the surprise success of superhero flick X Men (2000), Hollywood has been heaving with caped crusaders and masked defenders. With the impending release of Ra.One superheroes appear to be catching on in Bollywood. But is the industry suited to the genre’s sensationalism and lofty production costs? Is villain-bashing in spandex an Indian audience’s cup of tea?

The rapturous reception Wolverine actor Hugh Jackman received on a recent visit to Mumbai hinted Hollywood superheroes had infiltrated the Indian market. India’s younger generation especially appear taken with the genre’s visual feasts and the protagonists’ portrayal as upholders of moral justice makes them positive role models. Actor Shah Rukh said of his decision to act in Ra.One, “I am only doing this for my kids.”

SRK, though, was quick to distance Indian superheroes from their Hollywood counterparts, “The stories will always be set in an Indian context and the audiences have grown up with different concepts and stories.” Hrithik Roshan, star of superhero flick Krrish, was similar: “While Krrish may have all the powers of a typical Western superhero, he was not inspired by any Hollywood superhero.”

One area of similarity is success in the box office. Hollywood offerings The Dark Knight and Spiderman 3 reside amongst the world’s top twenty highest-grossing films of all time. Meanwhile Bollywood’s Krrish, the second highest Bollywood earner in 2006, grossed Rs150 crore, while in 2010 Robot (Enthiran) smashed the Bollywood grossing record, making Rs375 crore worldwide. It is clearly a lucrative genre, but Robot’s reported production cost of over Rs150 crore indicates a potentially risky one too.

Ra.One’s use of Hollywood specialists to train their VFX team indicates that Bollywood is not yet at the global forefront of VFX. A view shared by Merzin Tavaria, chief creative director of one of India’s largest VFX companies, but he remains ambitious for the future. “We have some catching up to do in terms of experience, but with our base in the key global markets, we are in a position to leverage that and share the knowledge to train our people.”

Roshan reflects this optimism. “We have the best minds in the business, so there’s no reason why we won’t be able to achieve the standards Hollywood has set for us.”

Without a bank of comic books from which to milk characters from, Bollywood is drawing inspiration from Indian culture. Recently, it was reported that actor Akshay Kumar would be playing a superhero inspired by Indian deity Hanuman, while Ra.One’s title is taken from the antagonist in the mythological epic, Ramayana. Bollywood superheroes are swooping in and, judging by reports, they are loyal to India.