Die Schweiz im Hindi-Mainstream-Kino - ein "Disneyland der Liebe"

Abstract

"Switzerland in Hindi Mainstream Cinema - a Disneyland of Love" explores the aesthetic, narrative and social relevance of Switzerland as a location in contemporary Hindi Mainstream Cinema. By giving a short overview of the history of non-Indian locations in Hindi films and discussing the most salient aesthetic and narrative devices for including "exotic" locales, the article maps out the different modes of representing Swiss landscapes from tourist destination to an imaginary landscape of love. Extending her approach beyond the cinema, the author discusses the use of Swiss landscapes in Hindi films in relation to popular visual culture in India in general and to a tradition of composite or collage images in particular, a tradition that has clearly influenced the aesthetics of contemporary popular cinema.