Why Tamilians Have Become The Flavour Bollywood

Right when we were writing Bollywood off for its 'Aiyoo' and 'Enna Pa' caricatures or Tamilians, movies like '2 States' and 'Madras Cafe' have changed our perspective. If you have observed, for a while now, B-Town has been churning out movies with a Tamilian lead or supporting character. And if the collections of 'Chennai Express' are to go by, then audiences are loving the genre to bits. This phenomenon could be a result of the freshness the such stories bring forth or may be a conscious decision to move away from Punjabi and Gujarati cultures. If this year's sensational hit '2 States' portrayed the leading lady Alia Bhatt as a Tambrahm in love with a Punju boy, last year's Madras Cafe had John Abraham's Raw agent as a tough Tamilian cop. Both movies were hits. Think Tamilian, and you can probably only recollect Mehmood's 'Ek Chatur Naar' act from 'Padosan'. But that cartoonish portrayal has definitely evolved over the years. The new-age Tam characters are educated and independent, often without the annoying accents and habits that Bollywood loved glorifying previously. Not just in movies, but serials like 'Yeh Hain Mohabbatein' and even ads like 'Fastrack Move On' have started incorporating Tamilian themes, plots and lyrics. With so many South Indians making waves in most fields, it looks like a natural extention of reel to real. Is this phase here to stay? We don't really know. But let's hope that such characters are reflection of real Tamilians and not those we find in our imagination. What's your take on this trend? Shout to us. Now!