Brief and to the Point: Bollywood Queens

Thursday, February 28, 2008

Bollywood Queens - Item Girls

This time, Brief and to the Point would like to clarify the concept of "Item Girl". According to the definition provided by Wikipedia, "Item number" is a term commonly used in Bollywood to describe a catchy, upbeat dance song in an Indian movie that has no relevance to the plot of the film.

The classic meaning of "item number" refers to highly sexualized songs with racy imagery and suggestive lyrics. The "item number" would feature an "item girl" who appeared in the film as a dancer, usually in a bar or nightclub, and was only in the film for the length of that song. It was often frowned upon at that point in time. Today, it is a commonly used term with hardly any negative connotations to it.

The origin of the term is obscure. It may or may not have something to do with the term "item bomb" (a corrupted form of "atom bomb"), a slang term used to refer to a sexy woman. Many movies use this addition in their films as a marketing tool that is used as a trailer or a teaser to publicize the movie on television music channels. Sometimes established female and male actors will lend a "special appearance" to an item number to enhance the film's marketability. Item numbers of this genre are generally less sexualized and have more of a pop flavor.

Mallika Sherawat has become the most expensive "Item Girl", as she charged Rs. 15 million (roughly US$375,000) for the song Mehbooba Mehbooba in Aap Ka Suroor - The Real Love Story.

Thanks to Wikipedia once again!

Please, find below our own special videos on Bollywood's Item Girls!

Mallika Sherawat - Bollywood's Hot Item Girl