Hot News Mix: Bollywood in Morocco, Delhi Belly’s Demise, The LA Times on Navratri + More

Bollywood’s Saucier Side. Director Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s gun + garba-infused take on Romeo-Juliet, Ram-Leela, will open the 13th edition of the Marrakech International Film Festival on November 29. “It is a cinema which speaks about love without nude scenes and is colorful and joyous and makes people dream,” claimed festival director, Melita Toscan du Plantier, discussing Bollywood’s supposed mass appeal. If the provocative trailers are anything to go by (including this white-hot item number by Priyanka Chopra), Ms. du Plantier — and her audience — may be in for a steamy surprise. [IB Times]

Nine Divine Nights. We’re thrilled Navratri’s getting some much-deserved coverage in the LA Times, but journo Esmeralda Bermudez’s piece, which describes the festivities as something of a primitive mating ritual, left much to be desired. Exhibit A: “The best time for courtship comes during the stick dance, when people move in groups, rotating partners to dance and tap their wooden sticks together. A suitor finds out during that playful, brief interaction if the one he covets is interested too.” [Los Angeles Times]

Safety First. New Delhi-based street vendors, long reprimanded for their lack of hygiene awareness (most don’t wear aprons, for starters), will soon receive training thanks to India’s Food Safety and Standards Authority. The goal? To create eight safe street food zones across the capital, so your serving of samosa chaat doesn’t come with a side of, er, Delhi Belly. [Daily Mail]

Modern Louwe. “Chemistry is bullshit,” isn’t exactly a declaration you’d expect from the founder of a wildly successful matrimonial website. But it’s just one of the many candid statements featured in Rohena Gera’s film, What’s Love Got To Do With It —  a fresh take on the distinctly desi quest for love (meddling aunties and all). While the doc made its world premiere at the Mumbai Film Festival this week, we’re eagerly waiting for a stateside screening. Are you listening, Rohena? [H/T @MumbaiBoss, @jhavanis]

Aarti Virani is an arts and culture writer based in Hoboken, New Jersey. She has written for publications including Vogue India, The Wall Street Journal and Travel + Leisure. Follow her on Twitter at @aartivirani.