By Rohini Mohan
I was really expecting very little when I rented the Baabul DVD. I knew I was setting myself up for 3 hours of tearful farewells, long winded songs, far fetched scenes, complicated emotions and an anachronistic storyline. Every now and then when scripts are wanting, Hindi movies stray into the area of some neglected social melodrama. Film makers know fully well that we hopelessly forgiving Bollywood audiences will gratefully gobble it all up. Not to mention the whole astrology angle which Bollywood financiers seem to happily substitute for old fashioned mathematics. I can just imagine Ravi Chopra’s thought process; Baghbaan starts with a B, has the big B in it; and Salman and Hema to boot. Same deal with Babul. Throw in a few Saigal style songs and some masala tear jerking, and Voila! Baghbaan super hit, hence Babul super hit….unfailing Bollywood logic. (Case in point, all the K movies made by Karan Johar – talk about preying on the subliminal!)