Export-importing desi pop culture

Having subcontinentals spread across the world is a wicked, rad way to not just spread our popular culture via its references all over, but also to de-conflate 'global pop culture' with 'Western pop culture'. Now, this is no political project by which renaming India 'Industan' will automatically proclaim our soft power worth. This pollination of desi pop culture is subtle - and effective. Take Tooting-born, grandparents-from-Lucknow, parents-from-Karachi London mayor Sadiq Khan. The 53-year-old, whose age makes him equally adept in soaking in Manmohan Desai movies as well as in Tom Baker-era Doctor Who episodes, quipped on Sunday how it's time for a modern reboot of the 1977 Desai epic, Amar Akbar Anthony. Why? Bruv, it's obvious, innit? Britain's head of state is a Christian (Mr Windsor), head of gov an 'indoo (Mr Sunak), and mayor of its capital city's a Moz (Mr Khan). Wicked!

More than anything else, the Labour leader's reference to AAA will push Britons of all hues and tones to check up the spiffy pop cultural reference to the Hindi film equivalent of Charlie's Angels comprising the legendary trio of Vinod Khanna as police officer Amar Khanna, Rishi Kapoor as qawwali singer Akbar Ilahabadi, and Amitabh Bachchan as 'daruwala' Anthony Gonsalves. 'Amar Akbar Anthony 2 set in London,' says Khanji. Joharji, make it!