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Argentina & India played a symbolic polo match as part of this year's Festival of India in Buenos Aires.

From Bollywood in BA to the Gujarat Builders Argentina Trade Mission to Mayor Macri announcing Tata’s Arrival in the BA Tech District, InvestBA has charted the strengthening ties between Argentina and India in 2010.

Now Financial Times says these bilateral outreach efforts are not only paying cultural dividends, the two countries are rapidly forging a two-way trade relationship worth US$3.8 billion, up 150% from last year alone.

Like China, India’s insatiable demand for food is stoking Argentina’s export engine to the tune of $1.8 billion. Yet that is where the trade similarity with China ends. When China seeks to expand the relationship by investing mightily in Argentina’s rail infrastructure, it is purely in their self-interest of accelerating the export pipeline. India, conversely, takes a more enlightened route by encouraging Argentina to diversify and broaden its export offerings to India.

“It doesn’t stop at food,” writes FT’s Jude Webber. “Biodiesel (both to import and to produce) and wood and paper pulp are in demand by India. Tata is evaluating joint ventures for making cars in Argentina. And there are mining, steel and other ventures too. The recent hit Argentine cartoon Gaturro was co-produced by India’s Toonz Animation.”

More recently, the Festival of India in BA this month brought together over 250 Argentine businessmen and dozens of members of the Confederation of Indian Industry who are exploring joint ventures. The annual Festival was a fitting culmination of an important year in the Argentina/India relationship, one that is poised to boom in the coming decade. (Full FT article)

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Argentine Telenovelas

BA companies like Underground Contenidos are conquering foreign lands with their original series.

Brimming with besos y lagrimas, Latin American soap operas, or telenovelas, have long been produced to appeal to the tastes of home audiences in the home country.

But globalization and the demand for international content from exotic regions a la Bollywood means more telenovelas are being packaged today for broader consumption. Seizing the opportunity, Argentine production companies are adapting their business model to meet the demand.

“Original screenplays that appeal to a wide range of audiences and cultures are highly sought after,” writes Marcela Valente adding, “Some productions are made entirely in Argentina, specifically for markets abroad.”

Argentina’s advantages for soap opera production include relatively low production costs, a deep local talent pool and the country’s natural beauty which makes for compelling backdrops for viewers in Russia and China.

While some production companies are exporting licenses to produce a foreign version of an Argentine soap, others are increasingly exporting finished products, original Argentine series that are dubbed into the local language. As an example, Valente points to Lalola, “which took Argentine viewer ratings by storm and was exported to the United States and to 60 other countries in Latin America, Europe, Asia and Africa. ” (Full article).

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Bollywood superstar Lisa Ray is participating in this month's India Film Festival in Buenos Aires

Bollywood superstar Lisa Ray is participating in this month's India Film Festival in Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires plays hosts to major international festivals year-round, but this month’s Festival of India finds Latin America’s most cosmopolitan metro showcasing the second fastest-growing economy in the world.

As one of India’s leading cultural exports, Bollywood takes center stage during the Festival with the arrival of actress Lisa Ray and the launch of the Indian Film Festival this evening at the Borges Cultural Center.

Ray, the 37-year-old star of Water and Bollywood/Hollywood, told Clarin she likes walking through the streets of Buenos Aires where nobody recognizes her. (Full Story) If her comment implies Bollywood hasn’t been widely embraced in Argentina, this month’s festival will be a welcome introduction.

Screenings will be held every night through November 15 and then on the weekends through December. In addition, Ray will be speaking at both the Universidad del Cine and INCAA, the National Institute of Cinema and Audiovisual Arts. According to the Embassy of India in Argentina, Ray will be meeting with Argentine filmmakers to discuss possible collaborations between Bollywood and Argentina.

 

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