And now for the first time an American studio has invested in Bollywood to bring Saawariya to the U.S. for a limited late 2007 theatrical release followed by a major DVD and Blu-Ray release in May 2008. It's a great choice to introduce Bollywood charms. Based on Dostoevsky's short story "White Nights," it's a highly stylized fairy tale about two doomed lovers—innocent and properly chaste as required in all Bollywood films to avoid offending traditional Hindu and Muslim audiences. Not even on-screen kisses are allowed!

Framed by the narration of another Bollywood staple—the courtesan with a heart of gold (Rani Mukherjee as Gulabji)—two visitors arrive simultaneously in town and converge in its red light district. Musical poet Ranbir Raj (Ranbir Kapoor) is on vacation to spread Bodhisattva joy and cheer to all he meets while beautiful darkly clad, umbrella bearing, melancholy Sakina (Sonam Kapoor) arrives to meet a mysterious lover (Bollywood super star Salman Khan as Imaan) on the first night of Eid. Instantly, Raj falls for Sakina, and they spend four memorable days together. But Sakina only sees Raj as a good friend, who makes her forget her sorrows, and she trusts him to deliver a fateful letter to her lover. Imaan has promised her only a "life of hardships," but Sakina has agreed to join him and meet at the appointed place and time.

Although highly predictable whether saintlike Raj will forgo his own desires, the characters still grab attention and charm. And that's not an easy task considering the lavish nighttime sets bathed in deep blues, greens, and blacks with occasional red enhancements—designed to showcase the city that Gulabji says "lives in my dreams." Dreamlike for certain, no location in India could ever serve as the setting here with its litter-free streets that combine elements of Casablanca with Venice.

Not meant to provoke, the melodramatic Saawariya delivers its intended goods through its musical numbers, not all that different in scope from the Hollywood musicals from the 1930s. But these are far more colorful and lively, especially the two numbers that Raj leads the town's hookers through—an ecclectic mix of classical Indian dance with modern Western touches. With high production values, veteran Bollywood director Sanjay Leela Bhansali communicates the bulk of the film's emotional content through Monty Sharma's music in a highly entertaining film that should serve well to introduce more Americans to Bollywood. A steady diet of such fare could result in Delhi belly, but Bhansali's film serves well as an appealing appetizer to whet more interest in cinema not often viewed in the U.S. (I at least stayed awake through the entire movie—unlike the Bollywood flick I experienced in Jaipur)