B U S I N E S S
Edited by
James E. EllisBloomberg Businessweek August 3, 2020● As it reopens, health rules
mean that big dance numbers
are out, social distancing is in12
most prolific movie industry is making to awaken
from one of the world’s strictest lockdowns. The
coronavirus, which has sickened more than a
million Indians—including superstar Amitabh
Bachchanandhisdaughter-in-law,AishwaryaRai,
a formerMissWorldwhoisoneofthenation’s
best-lovedactresses—isforcingfilmmakerstoradi-
callyrethinkhowtheydotheirjob.“We’velooked
atallthescriptsonourtabletomakethemmore
production-friendly,” says Atul Kasbekar, producer
of the award-winning thriller Neerja, who’s now
preparing to shoot a Hindi remake of the 1998 hit
German experimental film Run Lola Run. “The only
thing you can do is figure out what is the path of
least risk, financially.”
Kasbekar and other filmmakers in India are com-
peting for attention from streaming sites such as
Netflix and its homegrown rivals; these are the onlyBollywood movies have always been about excess,
with even serious scripts often managing to
squeeze in lavish musical numbers and frenetic
routines featuring scores of dancers. No more.
The pandemic is turning Bollywood downright
minimalistic. Shooting scenes of crowded wedding
songs—a staple of the genre—has been temporar-
ily ruled out by Covid-wary officials. And a chase
scene scripted for a dusty, crowded Indian street
was recently rewritten to take place in an empty
warehouse, confides one director at a major studio.
These are just some of the changes the globe’sBollywood Gets a
Covid Makeover
● Rehearsal on the set
of Bhakharwadi, where
umbrellas are a social
distancing tool