"Om Shanti Om" – Worksheets

Exercise 1: Introduction to the film "Om Shanti Om"

Subjects: German, English, music, performing arts from Grade 9, from age 14

Before the screening:

a) Watch the following film excerpt. Describe what you see in the Zum Inhalt: scene.

In addition to Zum Inhalt: camera angles, Zum Inhalt: picture composition, Zum Inhalt: costumes und Zum Inhalt: color design, discuss the Zum Inhalt: music and choreography.

Timecode: 02:27:00 – 02:34:00

Note: The timecode refers to the VoD version available on Netflix.

b) Based on this outtake and an analysis of the cinematic means employed, describe the characteristics of the protagonists and antagonists.

c) Discuss how the realistic narrative is interrupted and consider which Zum Inhalt: film genre "Om Shanti Om" belongs to.

During the screening:

d) While watching the movie, pay attention to the differences between passages with realistic narratives and passages that tell a story through dance and music performances. Examine similarities to the cinematic means you identified in exercise a) in other musical interludes. What role is played by dance and musical interludes in the overall narrative of the film? Immediately after the screening, make a note of your observations in the form of bullet points.

After the screening:

e) Discuss in class what you found especially moving and/or surprising.

f) Summarize the film plot in a few sentences. Discuss whether your suspicions about the genre from exercise c) were accurate.

g) The scene from exercise a) summarizes the plot of the first part of the movie until the deaths of Om and Shanti in the form of a musical performance. Compare how the portrayal in the musical excerpt differs from the depiction in the first part of the film. Discuss the cinematic means that are at the forefront in the respective excerpts and examine their effects.

h) Write a film review that refers back to the results of your work from exercises d) to g).

Exercise 2: Close-up – the role of music in Hindi entertainment films

Fächer: German, English, music, performing arts from grade 9, from age 14

After the film screening of "Om Shanti Om" :

a) Form small groups and reflect: what other so-called Bollywood films do you know in addition to "Om Shanti Om" ? Write down the film titles and compare narrative and cinematic similarities and differences to "Om Shanti Om" . Pay special attention to the musical aspects. If you are unfamiliar with Hindi entertainment film, get some first impressions by watching Zum Inhalt: trailers on the internet. Click Zum externen Inhalt: here (öffnet im neuen Tab) for a list of classic Hindi entertainment films and Zum externen Inhalt: here (öffnet im neuen Tab) for an overview of Indian cinema.

b) Compare the film poster for "Om Shanti Om" with the one for the American musical "tick, tick… BOOM!" What differences do you see? Discuss the placement of the credits: which members of the film crew get a mention and which don‘t? What could this tell us about the significance of the respective individuals within the production and in the respective film industry?

c) Successful Hindi entertainment film productions include all nine rasas (aesthetic flavor in Indian arts): love, heroism, disgust, comedy, horror, wonder, fury, compassion and peace. Summarize how these elements are featured in "Om Shanti Om" . In your analysis, pay special attention to the role of music and choreographies in conveying these emotions.

d) Watch the following scene from "Om Shanti Om again" (TC: 01:40:00-01:50:00). This scene is unusual because 30 A-list actors of Hindi entertainment film came together to perform a song. Examine the different choreographic styles of dance accompanying the song Deewangi Deewangi. Reflect critically on the dancers‘ choreography.

e) Split up into small groups and choose one of the choreographies danced by the character Om with one of the many guests in the party scene from exercise d). Create your own version: you can stick close to the original or make your own adaptation and stray far from the original. Use a streaming service to play songs from the "Om Shanti Om" soundtrack. You can also add other styles of music to create a crossover. Make sure as many rasas as possible are generated.

PPerform your choreographies with musical accompaniment from your class or film them with your smartphones. Afterwards, give each other feedback based on specific criteria.