Copyright by Meera Kumar 2008 The Dissertation Committee for Meera Kumar certifies that this is the approved version of the following dissertation: Indian-American Self-Representation: Transmission of Culture through the Entertainment Medium of Film Committee: ____________________________________ Paula M. Poindexter, Supervisor ____________________________________ Gene A. Burd ____________________________________ Donald Heider ____________________________________ Dominic L. Lasorsa ____________________________________ America B. Rodriguez Indian-American Self-Representation: Transmission of Culture through the Entertainment Medium of Film by Meera Kumar, B.A.; B.A.; M.A. Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School of The University of Texas at Austin in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy The University of Texas at Austin December 2008 Dedication This dissertation is dedicated to my father, who has always said to me, “Just take the best of both cultures.” Acknowledgements I would especially like to thank my dissertation supervisor Dr. Paula Poindexter for her constant guidance, acute insight, and academic acumen. Beginning with enrolling in her research methodologies course to having her as my dissertation supervisor, I feel fortunate to have learned so much from her. She has taught me about precision in scientific research and her care and attention to detail are ingrained in me; she has instilled in me the discipline and perseverance to achieve my goals. For all of this, I will always be grateful to her. Special thanks to Dr. Gene Burd for his kindness, originality, and intellectual zeal and to Dr. America Rodriguez for her warmth, support, and zest for research. I would also like to thank Dr. Don Heider for his patience, optimism, and dedication, and Dr. Lasorsa for his academic expertise and benevolence. I thank the faculty and staff at the School of Journalism for providing me with an inspiring and nurturing environment. Finally, I give special thanks to my grandfather, my father, my mother, and my brother for their unconditional love and support throughout my life and particularly during this entire process. I also thank my extended family and friends for their love and encouragement. v Indian-American Self-Representation: Transmission of Culture through the Entertainment Medium of Film Meera Kumar, Ph.D. The University of Texas at Austin, 2008 Supervisor: Paula Poindexter This study examined Hindi film representations of people of Indian origin residing outside India, Hollywood film representations of people of Indian ethnicity in America, as well as self-representation in Indian-American films. The researcher used the quantitative methodology of content analysis to examine representations in Hindi and Hollywood films and the qualitative methodology of textual analysis to examine self- representation in Indian-American films. The sample for the content analysis included Hindi films released between 1995 and 2005 and Hollywood films released between 1984 and 2005. The sample for the textual analysis consisted of 10 Indian-American films that were examined as transmissions of culture within their social and historical contexts as well as through available news sources. This study found that the majority of Hindi film depictions of people of Indian origin residing abroad and the majority Hollywood film depictions of people of Indian ethnicity in America had migrated from India. The results also revealed that Hindi films stereotyped, Othered, and marginalized Indians residing outside India and Hollywood vi films stereotyped, Othered, and marginalized people of Indian ethnicity in America. It also found that Hindi and Hollywood films rarely depicted second-generation Indian Americans. Indian-American films produced mostly by Indian immigrants primarily focused on Indian immigrants and sometimes adhered to Hindi film stereotypes when depicting second-generation Indian Americans. Indian-American films produced mostly by second-generation Indian Americans primarily focused on second-generation Indian Americans. The majority of characters in Hindi, Hollywood, and both immigrant and second-generation Indian-American films were male. Because of the limited representation of Indian Americans in the four activities of communication: surveillance, correlation, transmission of culture, and entertainment (Lasswell, 1948; Wright, 1959), as well as in communications literature, this study of Indian-American representation is an important contribution not only to journalism literature but to the field of journalism itself. It has brought to the forefront a significant but underrepresented group, highlighted this group’s diversity and cultural nuances, revealed how the portrayals of such nuances led to the subversion of stereotypes, and emphasized how through the act of self-representation, the transmission of culture takes place through the entertainment medium of film. vii Table of Contents Chapter 1: Introduction…………………………………………………………….....1-8 Indian Culture and American Culture…………………………………………………..3-4 Transmission of Culture, Entertainment, and Indian-American Culture………………..4-5 Why Indian-American Films?..........................................................................................5-7 Rationale………………………………………………………………………………...7-8 Dissertation Overview…………………………………………………………………….8 Chapter 2: Social and Cultural Background of India……………………………...9-28 Ancient India…………………………………………………………………………..9-16 600 Years of Islamic Rule……………………………………………………………16-18 India Under British Rule……………………………………………………………...18-22 India’s Independence and India Today……………………………………………….22-28 Chapter 3: The Rise and Growth of Cinema In India……………………………29-52 The Silent Film Era (1912-1934): the Dawn of the Indian Film Industry……………29-33 The Talkies: A New Era……………………………………………………………...34-35 Post-Independence Scenario………………………………………………………….35-40 Modernism, Escapism, and the Dichotomy and Blending of the East and West…….40-42 The Boom and the Divide: Commercial Films and Art Films (New Indian Cinema)..42-49 The Hindi Film Industry and the Emergence of “the NRI”…………………………..49-51 Summary……………………………………………………………………………...51-52 Chapter 4: Theoretical Framework and Literature Review……………………..53-69 Theoretical Framework……………………………………………………………….53-57 Literature Review…………………………………………………………………….57-69 Chapter 5: Methodology……………………………………………………………70-88 Quantitative Analysis………………………………………………………………...70-82 Qualitative Analysis………………………………………………………………….82-87 Summary of Research Design and Sample of Films…………………………………87-88 Chapter 6: Content Analysis Results……………………………………………..89-112 Depictions of Characters: Stereotyping to Evaluation……………………………….89-90 Socio-Economic and Cultural Depictions In Hindi and Hollywood Films…………..91-98 Addressing Transmission of Culture and Identity In Hindi and Hollywood Films…98-108 Depictions of Second-Generation Indian Americans……………………………...108-110 Summary…………………………………………………………………………...110-112 Chapter 7: Qualitative Analysis of Indian-American Films…………………...112-167 Definition of an Indian-American Film……………………………………………112-124 Analysis of Indian-American Films by Indian Immigrants………………………..125-167 viii Chapter 8: Qualitative Analysis of Indian-American Films (Continued)…….168-221 Analysis of Films by Second-Generation Indian Americans……………………...170-208 Feminist Perspective……………………………………………………………….208-219 Conclusion…………………………………………………………………………219-221 Chapter 9: Discussion and Conclusion………………………………………….222-261 Summary…………………………………………………………………………...222-227 Discussion………………………………………………………………………….227-253 Conclusion…………………………………………………………………………253-258 Methodological Contributions…………………………………………………….........259 Implications for Further Research…………………………………………………260-261 Appendix………………………………………………………………………….262-279 Glossary…………………………………………………………………………..280-286 Translation of Indian Film Titles………………………………………………….284-286 References…………………………………………………………………………287-294 Vita……………………………………………………………………………………..295 ix List of Tables Table 1: Overall Evaluation of Depictions of Hindi Film Characters of Indians Residing Outside India and Hollywood Film Characters of Indian Ethnicity in America………...90 Table 2: Age Comparison of Hindi Film Characters of Indian Origin Residing Outside India and Hollywood Film Characters of Indian Ethnicity in America………………….91 Table 3: Sex Comparison of Characters of Indian Origin Residing Outside India and Hollywood Film Characters of Indian Ethnicity in America…………………………….92 Table 4: Economic Class Comparison of Hindi Film Characters of Indian Origin Residing Outside India and Hollywood Film Characters of Indian Ethnicity in America………...94 Table 5: U.S. Citizenship/Residence Status of Hindi Film Characters of Indian Origin and Hollywood Film Characters of Indian Ethnicity…………………………………………96 Table 6: Size of Home Comparison of Hindi Film Characters of Indian Origin Residing Outside India and Hollywood Film Characters of Indian Ethnicity in America………...97 Table 7: Skin Tone Comparison of Hindi Film Characters of Indian Origin Residing Outside India and Hollywood Film Characters of Indian Ethnicity in America………...99 Table 8: Accent Comparison of Hindi Film Characters of Indian Origin Residing Outside India and Hollywood Film Characters of Indian Ethnicity in America………………...103 Table 9: U.S. Citizenship/Residence Status of Hindi Film Characters of Indian Origin and Hollywood Film Characters of Indian Ethnicity………………………………………..109 Table 10: Degree of Cultural