CallingCalling GodGod onon thethe WrongWrong Number:Number: ReligionReligion inin HindiHindi CinemaCinema Tuesday, March 28, 5:30 PM McCLUNG MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY AND CULTURE, AUDITORIUM Since December 2014, three of the biggest hits in the 100-year history of Indian cinema have been released. These include PK, Bajrangi Bhaijaan, and Baahubali: The Beginning. What is striking is that the two Hindi films, PK and Bajrangi Bhaijaan, both comedies, are set the context of clearly designated Hindu practices, with two directly concerning Muslims and Pakistan. In her talk, Professor Dwyer will discuss how these films show religious groups in a new way, breaking with the conventions of the Islamicate genres, showing different communities and their beliefs and practices. The connection between the films and the current imaginary in India is complex and exciting. Reception to follow. Free and open to the public. Rachel Dwyer Professor of Indian Cultures and Cinema School of Oriental and African Studies University of London Professor Dwyer received her BA in Sanskrit at School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, followed by an MPhil in general linguistics and comparative philology at the University of Oxford. Her PhD research at SOAS was on the Gujarati lyrics of Dayaram (1777-1852). She has published 11 books, several of which are on Indian cinema. She recently completed Bollywood’s India: Hindi Cinema as a Guide to Contemporary India. The University of Tennessee is an EEO/AA/Title VI/Title IX/Section 504/ADA/ADEA institution in the provision of its education and employment programs and services. All qualified applicants will receive equal consideration for employment without regard to race, color, national origin, religion, sex, pregnancy, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, physical or mental disability, or covered veteran status. A project of the Department of Religious Studies with assistance from the Office of Communications in the UT College of Arts and Sciences. E01-1070 JOB 17-047(update).