In pictures: Foreigners in Bollywood posters
- Published
Bollywood's famous hand-painted poster art has been on the decline in the past decade, but a few artists in the Indian capital, Delhi, are customising film posters with their clients' faces in a bid to revive interest. The BBC's Akanksha Saxena took these photographs at one such studio in Delhi.
With computer generated images becoming an easy and cost-effective substitute for poster art in the 1990s, many artists were forced out of work.
But in recent years, artists like Vijay Kumar have reinvented their art by mostly working with expat clients. Mr Kumar says his foreign clients pay him good money and generally don't haggle over prices.
Most of the new customers of this kitschy art-form are foreigners. This poster shows a client's face painted in place of superstar Salman Khan on the poster of his hugely popular film, Dabangg.
Originally introduced as an experiment, the idea of personalised Bollywood-style posters has caught on. Artist Vijay Kumar says the Taj Mahal remains an eternal favourite with his clients.
The posters are mostly commissioned by foreigners who take them home as souvenirs when they leave India. The ubiquitous cow on the street and auto-rickshaws add to the fun in this poster.
The poster of the Bollywood hit Om Shanti Om - which starred superstar Shah Rukh Khan and Deepika Padukone in the lead - is a favourite with the foreign clients.
This poster was commissioned by this couple to immortalise their love.
The hand-painted posters offered a fascinating insight into the history of the 100-year-old Indian cinema. This poster of a foreign diplomat with his family was gifted to him on his 50th birthday.