dgrachel's review
2.0
I received a free digital copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. I missed the publication date, so I purchased the audiobook. I've not seen many Bollywood films - in fact, I can only think of one and that happened to be a Disney film aired on Netflix. It's one of my favorite films, as I don't mind subtitles, and I love the sugary-sweet fairy tale. What drew me to this book, was the promise of a discussion of Turkish Dizi. I was curious for insight into what is driving the popularity of Dizi across the globe, as I have become a fan over the last 18 months or so. Sadly for me, this book lacks concrete answers, and really is far more focused on Bollywood and India vs Pakistan politics. The tone is decidedly anti-American, and that made it a little more difficult to read. I have to give the author love for claiming Cukur as one of her favorite Dizi dramas as it is my absolute favorite of the several I've seen.
If you are looking for a treatise on the politics of Bollywood, this might be of interest to you. Again, the topic of Bollywood and Indian/Pakistani politics takes up nearly 60% of the book. If your interest lies with Dizi, there's some interesting information here, and brief interviews with Kivanc Tatlitug, which I know will make my fellow US Dizi fans happy. I did find the apparent spat between the Saudis and the Turkish President interesting, especially how it impacted Dizi in the Middle East. However, if you want detailed insight into K-Pop, you'll need to look elsewhere, as K-Pop is only touched upon in the Epilogue.
TL;DR Some interesting information on Bollywood, Dizi, and K-Pop as they relate to global politics, but overall, disappointing.
If you are looking for a treatise on the politics of Bollywood, this might be of interest to you. Again, the topic of Bollywood and Indian/Pakistani politics takes up nearly 60% of the book. If your interest lies with Dizi, there's some interesting information here, and brief interviews with Kivanc Tatlitug, which I know will make my fellow US Dizi fans happy. I did find the apparent spat between the Saudis and the Turkish President interesting, especially how it impacted Dizi in the Middle East. However, if you want detailed insight into K-Pop, you'll need to look elsewhere, as K-Pop is only touched upon in the Epilogue.
TL;DR Some interesting information on Bollywood, Dizi, and K-Pop as they relate to global politics, but overall, disappointing.
sb1711's review
4.0
I would gladly recommend this book to those who are into popular culture. It's mostly about how popular culture from the global south has gained foothold around the world. Discussion of each popular culture mentioned in the book would require many books. This book is a bit short to include all the details but it's still a good introduction and has some interesting findings when highlighting the spread of these popular cultures.
The first section of the book is about Bollywood. I'm pretty well-versed with the basics of Bollywood so that part is just fine. The trickier part is the recent development. It's probably hard for people who don't follow closely enough to understand the rightward tilt described in the book. (But as somebody who follows quite closely and agrees with the author, I feel weirdly comforted and assured seeing some worrying observations put into words.)
The gold is really in the second part. Fatima Bhutto explained Turkish TV drama, dizi, which is huge and being broadcast and remade far beyond Turkey. It was very interesting to learn about this thing you have not heard about. I'm now very interested in checking out the dizis mentioned in the book.
Things I don't necessarily like..... one or two small mistakes with facts in the first part on Bollywood. And the conclusion that the next big pop culture will be coming from China.... It's a sensible guess but I have my own bias. (And the fact that there's no major Chinese popular culture export up to now is telling enough.)
It's a quick read and you can even pick just the part you're interested in and read selectively. Would highly recommend it.
The first section of the book is about Bollywood. I'm pretty well-versed with the basics of Bollywood so that part is just fine. The trickier part is the recent development. It's probably hard for people who don't follow closely enough to understand the rightward tilt described in the book. (But as somebody who follows quite closely and agrees with the author, I feel weirdly comforted and assured seeing some worrying observations put into words.)
The gold is really in the second part. Fatima Bhutto explained Turkish TV drama, dizi, which is huge and being broadcast and remade far beyond Turkey. It was very interesting to learn about this thing you have not heard about. I'm now very interested in checking out the dizis mentioned in the book.
Things I don't necessarily like..... one or two small mistakes with facts in the first part on Bollywood. And the conclusion that the next big pop culture will be coming from China.... It's a sensible guess but I have my own bias. (And the fact that there's no major Chinese popular culture export up to now is telling enough.)
It's a quick read and you can even pick just the part you're interested in and read selectively. Would highly recommend it.
tamreezinam's review
4.0
People seem surprised that Fatima Bhutto wrote this book because she is associated with 'serious' journalism and fiction that tackle hard-hitting subjects like politics, identity and radicalism. But New Kings of the World, which focuses on the rise of Bollywood, dizi (Turkish TV shows) and K-pop (South Korean pop), is actually not as fluffy as it appears at first glance.
Don't get me wrong- it is an accessible and highly entertaining read. But it is also an investigative exploration of global culture that asks big questions: how is the axis of power shifting away from the West and the US in particular? and how is culture and soft power playing a role in this?
The book highlights that these cultural phenomena have a reach way beyond their borders (eg. the popularity of Bollywood in Peru thousands of miles away); dizi providing solace and entertainment in Syrian refugee camps in Lebanon; or the popularity of K-pop internationally started by hits like Gangnam Style.
In the section on Bollywood I enjoyed how Bhutto linked the political and socio-economic developments in India to Bollywood eg the 50s and 60s being focused on nation building; the 'angry young man' (Amitabh Bachan) of the 70s who captured the disenchantment people felt with state corruption and ineptitude; neoliberal forces taking root in the 90s and early 2000s that made a western liberal lifestyle aspirational. Her outlook on present-day Bollywood is a bit grim, eg the links to the state's Hindu nationalist agenda, but I think she glosses over recent developments which I find heartening such as female directors and producers coming into the fray; films taking on unconventional topics and wider conversations around equal pay, nepotism and #metoo.
Don't get me wrong- it is an accessible and highly entertaining read. But it is also an investigative exploration of global culture that asks big questions: how is the axis of power shifting away from the West and the US in particular? and how is culture and soft power playing a role in this?
The book highlights that these cultural phenomena have a reach way beyond their borders (eg. the popularity of Bollywood in Peru thousands of miles away); dizi providing solace and entertainment in Syrian refugee camps in Lebanon; or the popularity of K-pop internationally started by hits like Gangnam Style.
In the section on Bollywood I enjoyed how Bhutto linked the political and socio-economic developments in India to Bollywood eg the 50s and 60s being focused on nation building; the 'angry young man' (Amitabh Bachan) of the 70s who captured the disenchantment people felt with state corruption and ineptitude; neoliberal forces taking root in the 90s and early 2000s that made a western liberal lifestyle aspirational. Her outlook on present-day Bollywood is a bit grim, eg the links to the state's Hindu nationalist agenda, but I think she glosses over recent developments which I find heartening such as female directors and producers coming into the fray; films taking on unconventional topics and wider conversations around equal pay, nepotism and #metoo.
atharvg's review
3.0
Engaging and easy to read, though the Bollywood section especially didn't seem to have anything new to say.
charleyroxy's review
5.0
So it might seem stange that an American, small town white girl would be bursting to talk Bollywood, Turkish Dizi, and K-Pop with you all but it really doesn't seem so strange after reading this book. In 2001 I had the absolute pleasure to see Monsoon Wedding in my local cinema. I loved everything, from the culture to the colours and music. I hurried to my local Blockbuster which had VHS copies of Asoka and Lagaan. My love for Bollywood was born not to mention my love for the two biggest Khans, Shah Rukh and Aamir. I spent hours on ebay to win auctions of DVDs and devoured them. After being raised on musicals my whole life it was the best thing ever. I think things reached a pinnacle when I got to see Main Hoon Na in the cinema and subscribed to a filmi magazine shipped from India.
Then in 2007 I moved to Turkey for seven years where even the American shows are dubbed in Turkish so why not just watch the Turkish ones. My absolute favourite was Öyle Bir Geçer Zaman ki, but I loved Muhteşem Yüzyıl (The Magnificent Century) too and even ran in to Hürrem one evening in Taksim. I had a dizi that filmed in the apartment building across from me one year (Melekler Korusun), a friend who wrote for diziler, and we had a night out with one of the main cast members from Fatmagül'ün Suçu Ne. As a a funny tie in I also took a Bollywood dance class at the Indian Cultural Centre in Istanbul.
So, on to New Kings of the World! This was such a fun and fascinating read. In all the years of loving Bollywood I never gave any thought to how much the politics of the region played a part in what films were made and what the heroes were portrayed as. Fatima Bhutto gives us the front row tickets to it all with her insights of the region and plenty of humour too. The byline of this book calls it "dispatches" and that is what it is. This isn't a comprehensive media history by any means but it is conversations, interviews, and anecdotes about some of the much loved stars of Bollywood, Dizi, and K-Pop. She even got to spend two days with the King, Shah Rukh Khan, while he filmed an Egytian television show. It was hilariously madcap! I found the chapter about the popularity of Bollywood and especially Shah Rukh Khan in Peru to be especially interesting.
The next section about Turkish Dizi was equally fun to read. How it has spread being very much linked to geography and similar cultural values, and then how in recent years it has fallen out of some favour in the Arab world but still is immensely popular. The K-Pop section at the end was quite short but I still learned a lot. I now have some good bands to check out and I liked that Korean dramas growing in popularity was mentioned too as it is something I have noticed recently.
Thank you so much to Columbia Global Reports and Fatima Bhutto for my review copy. Opinions are all my own. UK release date: 10 October
Then in 2007 I moved to Turkey for seven years where even the American shows are dubbed in Turkish so why not just watch the Turkish ones. My absolute favourite was Öyle Bir Geçer Zaman ki, but I loved Muhteşem Yüzyıl (The Magnificent Century) too and even ran in to Hürrem one evening in Taksim. I had a dizi that filmed in the apartment building across from me one year (Melekler Korusun), a friend who wrote for diziler, and we had a night out with one of the main cast members from Fatmagül'ün Suçu Ne. As a a funny tie in I also took a Bollywood dance class at the Indian Cultural Centre in Istanbul.
So, on to New Kings of the World! This was such a fun and fascinating read. In all the years of loving Bollywood I never gave any thought to how much the politics of the region played a part in what films were made and what the heroes were portrayed as. Fatima Bhutto gives us the front row tickets to it all with her insights of the region and plenty of humour too. The byline of this book calls it "dispatches" and that is what it is. This isn't a comprehensive media history by any means but it is conversations, interviews, and anecdotes about some of the much loved stars of Bollywood, Dizi, and K-Pop. She even got to spend two days with the King, Shah Rukh Khan, while he filmed an Egytian television show. It was hilariously madcap! I found the chapter about the popularity of Bollywood and especially Shah Rukh Khan in Peru to be especially interesting.
The next section about Turkish Dizi was equally fun to read. How it has spread being very much linked to geography and similar cultural values, and then how in recent years it has fallen out of some favour in the Arab world but still is immensely popular. The K-Pop section at the end was quite short but I still learned a lot. I now have some good bands to check out and I liked that Korean dramas growing in popularity was mentioned too as it is something I have noticed recently.
Thank you so much to Columbia Global Reports and Fatima Bhutto for my review copy. Opinions are all my own. UK release date: 10 October
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