Description
Intriguing, colorful, and revealing, The Courtesans of Bombay is Merchant Ivory’s docu-drama about Pavan Pool, the enclosed area where Bombay’s singing and dancing courtesans ply their trade. It presents a portrait of the unique location, both exotic and tawdry: crammed tenements housing thousands of men playing up to the camera as
Intriguing, colorful, and revealing, The Courtesans of Bombay is Merchant Ivory’s docu-drama about Pavan Pool, the enclosed area where Bombay’s singing and dancing courtesans ply their trade. It presents a portrait of the unique location, both exotic and tawdry: crammed tenements housing thousands of men playing up to the camera as they seek out forbidden pleasures—and the courtesans themselves, who appear more as entertainers than sex-workers. Neither sensationalist nor prurient, the film is about a tradition with a special place in Indian society: the entertainment of paying customers—always men—by songstresses and dancers who perform in the classical Hindustani styles of the ancient "nautch" girls, India’s version of the Japanese geisha.
... (more)
(less)
Directed by :
Starring :
Lists
|
Reviews of The Courtesans of Bombay - The Merchant Ivory Collection DVD (Region 1) - View all - Post review
|
Lists
Reviews
Images
Forums
Movies
TV Shows
DVDs
Music
Books
Games
