David Faustino

David Faustino remembers playing the lovable loser Bud Bundy on the popular 1990s sitcom Married…With Children. Perhaps he can chalk up his small screen character as practice for an intriguing role on the silver screen -– playing an affable, stumbling, down-and-almost-out filmmaker who attempts to reclaim his career by making a made-for-Hollywood Bollywood musical.

In light of the recent success of Slumdog Millionaire, many Hollywood filmmakers are rushing to strike while the iron it still hot in producing Bollywood-based feature films for American audiences. One such movie is already set for production –- The Bollywood Boys, which is expected to start filming this summer.

Starring Faustino in a lead role, The Bollywood Boys will also star Corin Nemec. Both Faustino and Nemec play two struggling filmmakers who head to Bollywood to reclaim their respective careers. The plan? Produce a Hollywood-Bollywood musical starring an “aged, has-been” Bollywood star and funded by Mumbai mob money.

Produced by Al Gomez and Todd Bringewatt, The Bollywood Boys will be directed by James L. Bills. According to Bills, he was approached by Gomez a little more than one year ago with the idea –- well before Slumdog Millionaire was even a thought in the minds of moviegoers and the Academy.

In developing the script, casting the stars, and preparing for production, Bills said he aims to make this a true, gut-busting comedy. In fact, as he is a big fan of Mel Brooks, Bills said The Bollywood Boys will pay homage to the legendary Hollywood funny guy. “It’s a true comedy — very grainy edgy but very funny,” Bills told Buzzine in an exclusive interview. “This movie is not going to be cheesy. Instead, it is kind of my homage to Mel Brooks.”

A director who broke into filmmaking more than 16 years ago in Austin, Texas, Bills said The Bollywood Boys will be just as funny as some of the industry’s greatest comedies in recent memory. “It’s kind of like The Producers meets Borat meets American Pie,” Bills said in attempting to describe the type of comedy moviegoers would expect in The Bollywood Boys. “This is going to be a fish out of water.”

Corin Nemec

In describing the movie without giving away too many details, Bills told Buzzine this movie will combine elements that both American and Indian audiences will find funny in a sort of comedy of errors based upon the misunderstanding of two different cultures. But do not expect to see random, senseless comedy. Instead, Bills said The Bollywood Boys will be the kind of comedy featuring everyday situations but with a twist.

“I like my writing to lead my audience down one path, and then it takes you down another path,” he said. “There is going to be a lot of funny twists and turns, and everything comes together in the end.”

In creating a film about two Hollywood producers trying to make it and survive, Bills said fans can easily relate to the struggles of the characters played by Faustino and Nemic, which makes the punch-lines that much funnier to those watching the movie. Yet, ultimately, Bills thinks the timing of this movie is perfect –- not because it comes on the heels of Slumdog Millionaire winning an Oscar for Best Picture, but because it has the potential to be a timeless classic.

“I made this film for me and my generation,” Bills ecstatically told Buzzine. “There are so many layers of comedy in this film. I want people to pick up this movie several years later and still laugh as hard then as they did the first time they saw the movie. I want them to laugh 15 different times –- now and later.”

Filming for The Bollywood Boys will begin in summer 2009 at various locations in Hollywood and features American and Indian actors in both leading and supporting roles.

Stay tuned to Buzzine for exclusive updates about this movie.