Living the High Life.

Yesterday we met the producer of Tanu weds Manu, Sailesh Singh.

I learnt a lot about Bollywood and how it functions. The most shocking part is that Sailesh told me that writers are not respected in Bollywood, not as respected as in Hollywood (not that they are respected much there either)! He told us that often films are bought and sold off the stars that are within the film.

The gang with Sailesh.

He told us that financiers will not read the script but will get a pitch, hear the stars attached and then approve or disapprove of the film.

The most exciting thing that came out of the interview is that Sailesh said he would like us all to pitch ideas of how to market his newest film. So, it’s now being organised for us to come back to his office to see his newest film which is still in post: Sixteen. Then he would like to hear our ideas about how to market the film!!! So exciting!

After the meeting, we headed to Juhu beach again. When we were coming in we saw a restaurant called Bora Bora which looked really fancy. We decided to go there for dinner. It was so beautiful as it overlooked the beach. It also meant as I was able to get MEAT! Since all food is included in this program it is strictly vegetarian.

Bora Bora the ‘poshie’ restaurant where we had some dinner.

Tried the mouth freshener Paan today. Looks delicious does it not?

It was not. It tasted like I was eating toothpaste with a listerine sauce.

Juhu Beach.

Juhu Beach.

Wedding Crashers!

We awoke in the morning and had our first Indian breakfast. Candace (a girl in our group) arrived pretty soon after breakfast, which meant we had to change accommodation. With a quick farewell to the apartment we’d been staying in for the night, we were off.

Check out our pool. Then check out the spa. It’s green. 

We settled into our new accommodation and decided to check out the area. We did a little lap to orientate ourselves then came back to the apartment. We were staying in an area of Mumbai called Malad. It’s a suburban area so we got a lot of stares from people. We were later informed that Malad was a suburb that had been built on a rubbish tip. Not sure if it’s true or not.

We tried to figure out what to do with the day. Candace was tired and went to sleep but Sarah, Melissa and I wanted to check out the sights. After some research, we realised we were about an hour away from the city with traffic. One ‘attraction’ was a mall that was nearby so we decided visit. The lady on the plane had told me that I had to go to a Mall while in India.

After a short auto-rickshaw ride, we arrived at Infinity Plaza. From the outside this place looked like a big, dirty silver box but inside, I felt like I’d be transported back to New Jersey, America. The floor was so clean and shiny that my shoes could hardly grip to it. This was my first experience of the dichotomy of India.

As we walked around and got food from the food court I saw what Anupam (from SBS’s Bollywood Star) had said was true. This was not the India I had seen in Slumdog Millionaire or any other filmic depiction of India. I saw parents dropping off their kids for movie dates with friends, and the usual shopping centre kind of arrangements. There was McDonalds, popcorn scented cinemas and all the usual thrills. There were only two things that made it different: there was a lot of security (we had to go through a metal detector when we first walked in) and it had a ROLLERCOASTER INSIDE IT!

South Indian desert and an Indian coffee.

So after our discovery of the ROLLERCOASTER (AHHHH!) we decided we’d work our way up to the top level. We checked prices to see if the stores were cheaper than in Australia. They had the Bodyshop, Forever New, Zara and they were slightly cheaper.

Sarah and Melissa grabbed some donuts and I went to a strange South Indian Fast Food joint and got myself a little something. I wasn’t sure what the desert was but it was slightly custardy and slightly chai tasting. It was milky and full of noodles and almond flakes.

Now well fed we went on the rollercoaster.

Finding nothing else of interest in the shopping centre we decided to have a walk around the area. We didn’t have anything to do at home anyway. We weren’t sure when everyone would be arriving.

As we walked down the street we saw a driveway that was very well decorated. A man in white told us we could head in and check it out. He told us it was a wedding and if we wanted we could stay. We went inside and to check it out.

TO BE CONTINUED!!