Bollywood is an industry that employs many, and is an important source of India's soft power. It is the government's responsi-bility to ensure that Bollywood is not put out of business by rampaging Hollywood moguls keen to capture the Indian market.

India is fast becoming a superpower not just through trade and politics but through its ability to share its culture with the world through food, music, technology and Bollywood, according to Dr Derek Lobo

In the last few years, India has deftly indulged in Bollywood promotion in China, part of soft power diplomacy that both sides feel help in creating a positive atmosphere for nurturing bilateral ties that often get entangled in sensitive issues.

A collection of rare vintage Bollywood showcards is taking top billing at one of Toronto’s biggest museums. “We think of Bollywood as such a localized phenomenon, but in fact it has been part of the global film industry from its inception..."

“The centenary celebrations would provide the country an excellent opportunity to exhibit India’s soft power on global scale and reinforce the idea of Cinemas of India along with the Incredible India campaign,” says Soni.

Cowboys and Aliens was the biggest, shiniest fruit yet to fall off the tree planted in July 2009 by Steven Spielberg's DreamWorks and India's Reliance Entertainment. What Reliance are attempting – to perform locally within India as a Bollywood production house, and step up to the international stage, too – is extremely difficult.

Bollywood and cricket will blend with diplomacy when the prime ministers of India and New Zealand hold talks Tuesday to push a free trade area pact. Egging them on to do more business will be Stephen Fleming, the Kiwi cricket icon who is the coach for the IPL-winning Chennai Super Kings.

Just as the American culture industries, especially Hollywood, were instrumental in constructing and disseminating the narrative about the attraction of the United States that helped make it the most influential player on the world stage in the 20th century, the rise in the popularity of Bollywood films could help to do the same for India in the 21st.