To strike a Bond with India we need to shake and stir 007 a little bit more — desi style

If James Bond can now be blond, get his fists bruised, drink Heineken lager rather than vodka martinis, drive BMWs, stop chain-smoking and report to a female M, there is no reason to be shaken or stirred if Idris Elba — fresh from playing Nelson Mandela — takes over the super spy’s cloak and dagger from Daniel Craig after 2015. So some commentators likening a non-white actor playing the iconic British spy to George Clooney essaying the role of US President Barack Obama is quite un-fair. Since the dashing fictional character has already moved significantly away from the way he was imagined by Ian Fleming, a mere change of race will hardly be a tectonic shift. There would be more hubbub, surely, if the dashing commander with an eye for the ladies suddenly becomes more ambiguous in his amorous choices.

However, if the film series’ producers are indeed thinking of infusing new blood into the debonair 007, an Indian in the main role may be more germane, especially given the rising profile of Indians in the west. Besides, not only does India already have many hugely marketable, age-appropriate actors with vast fan clubs assuring great box office returns, they are already used to spectacular stunts, high speed car chases, fighting off dozens of villains singlehandedly, stylised dialogues — and getting the girl in the end.