Bollywood Film History

(The era of Commercialism (Till 80's).

Bollywood or Hindi Cinema is the most vibrant and cultural theme oriented cinema of the
subcontinent and present India. India with its twenty eight states has a very diverse linguistic and
artistic charisma that is depicted in its various art form from music, dancing to movie making.
Movie making in India was introduced in colonial era. The various foreign movies by master film
makers were then brought for show in India that included movies from award winning festivals as
Toronto, Cannes, Berlin, and Sundance etc. The first fullest Hindi film came out as silent film
Raja Harishchandra in 1913 produced and directed by DadaSaheb Phalke. The film is a
modified story from Indian religious epic Mahabharata. Indian cinema took its first inspiration
from stories of kings and gods as prevalent in the holy books as Ramayana.
Bollywood is currently the largest film producer, not in India alone but worldwide. Every year
more than 800 films are released. It is also referred as Hindi media as language spoken is Hindi
that is similar to Urdu, more sophisticated and poetic language of the subcontinent.

Bollywood Emerging with Romanticism:

Bollywood film range in all sort of genre: from comedy, romance, spirituality, drama to horror
and suspense. But it has always been an idealistic mode of theme that can be termed as
Escapism. A world of fantasy shown which makes the audiences drench in fulfilling and
satisfying environment of riches and opulence. Indian movies mostly survive on its viewers who
are lower middle class and belong to the class that earns on daily basis. The hardships of lives and
oppression they suffer make them douse in an artificial commercial set up of wealthy scenarios
where the love emerges from high standard backgrounds.
Devdas a breakthrough in 1936 was also built around such themes. It was produced by
Pramathesh Chandra Barua, an actor producer and director who mostly worked on silent films.
The film was a high success. It was made on love story of a Land Lords son with a lower class
girl. With the social metaphore of conflicting class statuses causing failed romances and long
injured heart breaks, the subject of this film is even today reusable and is remade three times. The
latest re-make had been a mega hit in 2002 when Sanjay Leela Bhansali created like a classic
version of early 20th century romance of a London returned lad who didnt forget his sweetheart
of teens.
Love, tragedy and happy endings have been the essence of Bollywood cinema where the
protagonist often suffer from the dilemma of social injustice and hurdles of uneven social
landscape and class or race conflicts, yet the struggle to break the chains and unite forever.

Impact of Leftist Movement on Indian Cinema:

India is home to socialist movements and rebellious minds that have an active role in politics. The
leftist also had a great influence on Bollywood. K.A Abbas, a journalist and writer who sought to
draw indigenous social realism to communicate radical ideas. This was specifically evident in his
film Dharti k Laal (Children of Soil) about the famine of Bengal in 1943. The film showed the
immense poverty and hunger striken farmers and the social injustice suffered. It led many
intellectuals to orient towards real social causes of the masses and basically the nationalism
Raj Kapoor is another impressive name in history of Bollywood who made films for the
unprivileged segments of the society and brought the lives of common people in a very romantic

and inspiring way.

Most of his films targeted the booming capitalist society of the metropolis which was segregating
the people on financial basis. At the era of post-colonial time when the people should be
awakening to their deprived social statuses they were getting from human suffering and loss of
respect for the downtrodden. He was inspired by communist leaders and intellectuals like Kaifi
Azmi and Sajjad Zaheer. He provoked the social consciousness of the society in a light manner
and worked in his own films as hero.
His film Awara Vagabond (1951) and Shri 420 (1955) are of comedy genre yet they convey the
grave realities of poor classes, their inabilities to survive and endure harsh circumstances. The
sorrows and pain that is inflicted in life of a free person who seemed to be independent of social
bounds yet misery and poverty he cannot escapes from. And in such scenario how the realism of
abject poverty plays role of villain in aspects of growing love in young hearts and minds is
beautifully shown. He intelligently maneuvered romanticism to achieve the subject of social,
political and positional equality. Therefore he remains a legend in Bollywood for making a
landscape of neo-realism for the indian cinema that takes its roots in class struggle, yet shown
from protagonist point of view and not much mature but giving an idealistic case of human
development.

Satyahit Ray was a Calcutta born bengali writer and director who introduced lyrical
realism inspired by Italian neorealism in Bollywood culture. His first film Pather
Panchali, Song of Little Road (1955) directed by Satyajit Ray and produced by the
Government of the Indian state of West Bengal. The film was low budgeted and had
amateur artists and inexperienced crew however it earned him admiration worldwide as
the film won "Best Human Document" award in the 1956 Cannes Film Festival.
Bimla Roy is another Bengali acclaimed bollwood director who is renowned for making socialist

concept movies. His film "Do Begha Zameen" (Two acres of land) is based on famine
of bengal and story of a farmer who is suffering from the crisis and the hands of landlord.
The feudal harsh realities and the peasent life to the extent of extreme hardships is
beautifully captured.
The movie ends with Shambhu returning to his village, only to see his land sold and a
factory being constructed over it.The movie got the name from a famous poem by
Rabindranath Tagore, called "Dui Bigha Jomi". This film was the first indian film to
win the International prize in Cannes Film Festival.
Mrinal Sen is a famous bengali film maker whose film making thoroughy inspired by political
and social development and the movements of marxism, italian neorealism, new french vague and
existentialism. His film Interview (1971) is based on existentialism where the protagonist is a
common person who goes for an interview of a foreign fim and couldnt find a foreign suite to
wear and in hassle and agony he goes in traditional bengali dress of dhoti and kurta. A very small
but touching topic of anti colonialism hangover and existentialism. Calcutta 71 (1972)is another
film by same director about corruption and harsh realites of Calcutta. A story of young man who
dies many times because of protests, political turmoils. The film is very harsh in depicting agony
of Calcuttans.

Bollywood of 80s, emerging with commercialism with modernity:

In 80s the cinema of India has come out of Idealistic romanticism of the 60s and early
70s and it evolved into fast culture of modern world. The world was continuing to shrink
as global village then it was getting inspiration from foreign world. It was politically and
socially a time to stabilize and grow. Late Rajiv Gandhi was in power and due to
democratic steps of globalization trends, the entertainment industry particularly

Bollywood expanded and emancipated with a wind of change.

The main theme of the early movies have been on subject of growing oppression and
injustice of the society. A roar and cry of the Janta/People was depicted in the film taking
on case in hand. And the leading roles or characters oriented from within the society as
sane and honest judges, policemen, politician or professors. There contributions to make
a legally and politically correct society were aspirations of that times. Apart from that
Indic cultures have long suffered from its roots of class differences. The movies in 80s
took a constructive turn to show equality, freedom and openness to marry with free will
in different castes thus shedding the pseudo supremacy of races.
Therefore apart from romanticism that had always been core essence of bollywood film,
action, drama and suspense also became a powerful genre to take considerable attention
of the audience. New techniques and to make fighting films and technologies to show
explosions, fires and chases were plotted in the film.
The lifestyles and attitudes of the people also progressed with advent of money and
commercialism and a typical middle class background was now being focused as the
emerging strength of Indian Ideology. This however suppresses the voice of the very
much um-privileged segments of the society that were overlooked even by the elected
goverments. Thus they didnt find a suitable place in the 80s cinema except for the art
movies that very specially eyed their deprivations and captured the grim realities.