The Best at It

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of mental illness.

Bollywood Supply is Rahul’s dad’s band, which plays Hindi-language covers of songs by the soft rock duo Air Supply. Bollywood Supply and the music they play symbolize the unique cultural hybridity often embodied by immigrants to the United States. This symbol also intersects with the theme of Figuring Out and Accepting One’s Identity, as Rahul’s relationship with the band grows from embarrassment to enthusiasm.

“Bollywood” is the term used to refer to Mumbai’s Hindi-language film industry. Bollywood films often showcase India’s diverse and complex history of dance, art, fashion, music, and more. Bollywood dance and music both have hybrid characteristics that blend traditional Indian dance and music with contemporary music genres. In this way, Bollywood is already a fusion of classics and contemporaries. Bollywood Supply taking English-language soft rock and adding a Bollywood “twist” symbolizes a productive cultural enmeshment.

Rahul is initially embarrassed by the band. When faced with the prospect of Bollywood Supply playing at the International Bazaar held at his school, he worries, “What if people come?” (187). His broad worry that anyone will see the music mirrors how he hides his knowledge of Indian heritage at school.