Hot Docs 2008

Director Liz Mermin's fast-paced, multilayered and captivating doc about shooting a blockbuster gangster movie in Bombay/Mumbia is packed with more drama and action than the movie itself. Following a cast of charismatic and often surreal characters, the doc goes beyond the tinselly glamour of Bollywood to explore some of the industry's darker sides. With unprecedented behind-the-scenes access to a star-studded cast, Shot in Bombay tells three intertwined stories: the rise of the city's underworld in the 1990s, narrated by a no-nonsense ex-police chief known as "Bombay's Dirty Harry"; the tribulations of superstar Sanjay Dutt, on trial for alleged involvement in India's largest terrorist attack; and a young director's dogged quest to master the delicate art of making a Bollywood blockbuster. With three and a half weeks before the movie wraps, the lead star actor is held up in legal battles. Without the star the entire production is a flop. Shot in Bombay is a high-octane adventure.
-Sarah Whitehouse