"Music is my love. Music is my passion. Music is my best companion."

Nalini and Praful Shah

Bollywood movies and songs tend to focus on various themes/forms of love, including grand romance, longing, heartbreak, and destiny. It also explores the tension between personal desire and family expectations. These forms of media often highlight the push and pull tension between tradition and modernity, especially in how characters navigate cultural values, identity, and independence. Many of these stories cover social issues like gender roles, class differences, and justice. These emotion-driven narratives help make broader points about society. Bollywood shows community, joy, and shared rituals through weddings, festivals, and music, while also embracing melodrama, moral victory, and the idea that fate guides relationships and life paths (Prasad).

Shown above are images of my grandmother and her family members. As she explained, these are (some of) the people that have influenced her love for music. I visited India in that third trip with my grandmother. Personally, I can attest to the impact that music has had during this trip. From karaoke moments to watching Bollywood films together, music has been central to our family and in my grandmother's life.

Similar to the sentiments expressed my grandmother in the video clip above, many studies have been conducted showing the positive impacts of music on immigration. One such study "analysed how music is utilised as an arts-based research method in community-based health and wellbeing contexts" (Garry). In this study, musical engagement was found to help promote migrants’ psychological wellbeing, social connection, sense of identity, cultural belonging, and emotional expression. 

Dharmendra

Dharmendra was one of Bollywood’s most iconic actors. He died at the age of 89 due to age-related illness. He appeared in more than 300 films over his six-decade career. He is remembered for his charisma, versatility, and the lasting impact he left on Indian cinema. 

Some of Dharmenda's work can be Found Here.

The film she was singing from Chori Chori: Found Here.

After recording this interview, my grandma came to me and said "Please keep this interview after your class. When I'm no longer in this world, I want you all to have it".