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Which country produces the largest number of movies?

You might be surprised to learn that India produces an average of 800 movies a year, and that number continues to grow. Just as the movie capitol of the United States is Hollywood, the movie capitol of India is Bombay, but it is commonly called “Bollywood,” a combination of the words Bombay and Hollywood.

No Bollywood movie is considered complete without a few song and dance sequences. In fact, music is an integral part of Bollywood movies. Even a bad movie can still do well if the music is good. Music directors are sometimes more popular than the film stars themselves. An average Bollywood movie has five to six songs with at least three songs performed to elaborate dance routines. There are a lot fewer movies without music or dance, and those are considered to be art films or serious cinema.

Bollywood may be different from Hollywoood in regards to music, but it is very similar to Hollywood in several ways. If Tom Cruise or Brad Pitt can wield a gun so can the Bollywood hero Sharukh Khan. Bollywood stars are followed by photographers and the press just as often as Hollywood stars. The private lives of actors and actresses catch the headlines daily, just as they do in the United States. Some Bollywood actors get into politics too, just as Arnold Schwarzenegger has in California.

The Oscars are a very exciting time of the year for actors and actresses in America. Bollywood has its own version of the Oscars, and they are conducted with just as much excitement.

Here is a fun fact: Did you know that India has over 100 languages!