Almost every Hollywood film with a mass appeal that is released in India comes with its dubbed versions in Hindi and regional languages. And many regional films are released with English subtitles, not to mention the daily dose of South Indian films dubbed in Hindi churned out by many movie channels on TV. But what if a non-Hindi speaking person wants a taste of the desi Bollywood flavour in a movie theatre? There is a solution for that too now, with multiplex chains beginning to screen Hindi movies with English subtitles around the country. So now, you can take your expat or South Indian friend along next time you plan a Hindi movie outing. With the metros being a melting pot of several cultures, what with the huge outstation and expat population and a steady tourist inflow, we decode how the addition of subtitles has altered the movie-going experience of the non-Hindi speakers in the city.

A VARIETY OF SUBTITLES ON OFFER
Indian cinemas have been screening regional languages with English subtitles, Hindi movies with English subtitles and English ones with English subtitles. Some of the multiplex chains tell us they have been screening Hindi movies with subtitles in non-Hindi speaking cities, but now they are beginning to screen Hindi movies in metros with English subtitles for the benefit of expats and non-Hindi speaking audience. Says Kamal Gianchandani, CEO, PVR Pictures, “English films come with English subtitles for those who are more comfortable reading the English language. And then there are English movies dubbed in Hindi, Tamil and other regional languages. Movies in Marathi or Malyalam also attract a decent number of viewers when they come with English subtitles. Hindi movies with English subtitles is a new initiative because metros have a sizeable number of people who do not understand Hindi. “A Tamilian or a Bengali in, say, Mumbai or Delhi wouldn't be very comfortable watching a Hindi movie. But they are much more likely to enjoy a Hindi movie with English subtitles. For them, and for expats in the city, this might be a good option,“ says Kamal. A spokesperson of Inox says, “In NCR, from the forthcoming week, we will be screening Hindi movies with English subtitles for one show every evening at our multiplex in Nehru Place. We have been screening Hindi movies with English subtitles for every show in all 14 screens in Tamil Nadu, which includes nine screens in Chennai and five in Madurai. Besides, we always screen regional movies with subtitles in all of our screens across the country.“

Devang Sampat, head of Strategy-Business, Cinepolis, says, “We have seen an increase in the number of foreign nationals staying in India and Bollywood movies appeal to them, but they fail to understand without any translation. We have experimented with subtitles in the past and it has been appreciated. We intend to have some special shows with English subtitles depending on the availability in the future.“

EXPATS LAUD THE MOVE
If a Gangs of Wasseypur can strike a chord at the Cannes Film Fest, or a The Lunchbox can be applauded by the foreign audience the world over, then why should expats and other non-Hindi speakers in India be deprived of the magic of a Bollywood movie? A multiplex chain is screening recent releases with English subtitles, and we spoke to a few expats about how it will make it easier for them to go for a Hindi movie now. Says Diana Linda, an Italian upcyclist living in Mumbai for over a decade, “It is an excellent piece of news. Finally, what I was expecting for 13 years. I will be watching more Hindi movies now. More than the singing and dancing, it is the dialogues of these films I would like to understand. I prefer watching films in theatre to DVDs so the fact that they will use subtitles is great since I won't have to wait for the original DVD to come out. This will internationalise the Bollywood industry worldwide. It will make watching films like Detective Byomkesh Bakshy and Mary Kom a delight because I couldn't understand a lot of the nuances.“

Sandra O'Malley, head of media and public diplomacy, Australian high commission, says, “Australians are big fans of Bollywood - there are cinema chains in Australia that release the new blockbusters only a few days after they're shown in India. I've seen a number of Bollywood movies since moving to India - the songs and dances are enjoyable whether you can understand Hindi or not. But I love the idea of being able to fully follow the story through English subtitles as I would be able to understand the emotions.“

Mercelline Orindi, counsellor (economic) Kenyan high commission, says, “My son loves watching Hindi films, but he doesn't understand the language so well. But, if we get to see a Bollywood movie with English titles, then why not? English subtitles will only make it easier for us to understand the film.“

Jo Cravinho, ambassador of the European Union to India, says that typical song and dance is not to his taste, but he enjoyed watching Lagaan and The Lunchbox. He said, “Thanks to films, we can laugh together, relive history , explore the beauty of distant landscapes and celebrate what makes us human. Films help in bringing people together across the world and also boost tourism. What would be better than screening a foreign language film for us with subtitles?“ Kavitha Pillai, a student from Chennai, says, “My first Hindi movie was ABCD 2, which I'd watched in Chennai with English subtitles, after which I started following Bollywood movies. Almost all paid online platforms show Hindi films with English subtitles, but in theatres, not all Bollywood movies are played with English subtitles. Obviously, subtitles make it easier for those whose first language is not English.“

DUBBED OR SUBTITLES?
When we asked people whether they prefer a dubbed film or one with subtitles, they picked subtitled films because according to them, the dubbed films seem 'fake'. Zeeshan Khan, who works in an MNC said, “I always go for the language the film's originally in, but with subtitles. It might be cheaper or easier for the production department to run the scroll, but for viewers it is about the authenticity of the films and so they go for subtitles instead of the dubbed version. This helps people in understanding the movie, and eventually helps them learn the language and start watching movies without subtitles.“

TV HAS CHANGED THE BALL GAME
Hindi speakers prefer to watch English films with subtitles on TV. Ankit Gangwar, an IT manager said, “My parents prefer catching Hollywood movies on TV because the subtitles help them in deciphering the accent. In fact, when the words are inaudible, the subtitles make it easy.“

FOREIGN LANGUAGE MOVIES DUBBED IN HINDI
Even though most people prefer watching a film in its original language in halls, when it comes to TV, the rules change. Shweta Vajpayee, a banker says, “I've seen a number of dubbed films like Harry Potter series and Jackie Chan movies in Hindi. In fact, there are a number of TV channels which show movies in foreign languages dubbed in Hindi. I have seen a lot of films just because they were dubbed versions.“

REGIONAL MOVIES DUBBED IN HINDI
You must have heard your friends laughing at the dubbed Hindi dialogues of the Tamil films which make the dialogues sound a little more dramatic. Shambit Gupta, a government employee, says, “I still watch Kannada, Telugu, Tamil and Bengali films dubbed in Hindi. This way, you don't miss out on good films in other languages. These days subtitles have turned into a business and the meaning is not lost in translation. Earlier, when the vernacular films were screened on Doordarshan, either the subtitles would run too fast or the dialogues!“

SUBTITLES IN THEATRES
And if films are opting for subtitles, can theatre be far behind? A lot of European plays, Israeli plays and vernacular plays are being staged with subtitle scrolls in Delhi. When NSD's play Kitabon Mein Halchal was screened in Japan in 2007, the team had to prepare Japanese subtitles for the audience. Divyanka Sharma, a regular at plays, told us, “These scrolls help us in decoding the dialogues, otherwise you can get the essence of the story but will miss out on all the important dialogues. At the same time, it is quite distracting as well because you might not understand some expressions.“

REGIONAL FILMS WITH ENGLISH SUBTITLES
Venky*, a media professional, says, “If my non-Tamil speaking friends get to know about a good Tamil film, they prefer to watch it with English subtitles, but if the film doesn't release with subtitles, they have to wait for the DVD. Subtitles definitely increase viewership.“ Abinash Bhargava, a college student who has recently watched Kaaka Muttai in Tamil with English subtitles, says, “We'd heard so much about the film and it had released with subtitles, so we had no problem watching it. But sometimes the written word differs from the spoken one, and long dialogues are also edited to fit two lines on the screen, which is irritating.“

ENGLISH MOVIES WITH ENGLISH SUBTITLES
The screening of English movies with English subtitles is quite common, but many find it a distraction. Aalekh Saxena, a college student, says, “I prefer watching English movies without subtitles because they are a huge distraction, but many of my friends prefer subtitles because they don't want to miss out on the nuances of the dialogue. The English accent also varies depending on the characters and the setting of the film.“

*Name changed on request