Mumbai is the throbbing heart of the highly productive Indian film industry. In Bollywood, a portmanteau of Bombay and Hollywood, more than 1,000 feature films are produced every year. Take a look behind the scenes of this unique film universe or spot upcoming film stars in one of the many hip bars in the city.
You can tell a classic Bollywood film by its brightly-coloured sets, a melodramatic story line and lead actors who court each other with songs. The films are also famous for their elaborate dance choreographies influenced by Hollywood musicals from the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s, as well as ancient Indian dances. Although there are many parodies mocking the saccharine Bollywood style, more than 3 billion film tickets are sold every year in India. Not surprisingly, Indian film stars are worshipped like demigods.