By Tanvi Thareja 03716603912

The Indian Cinema has undergone a massive change over the years. It started in 1913 from silent movies to the first talkie in 1931 to the colored movies to the ones today. Indian cinema, along with all its peculiarities, has been a reflection of the socio-economic, political and cultural changes that took place in the country.

As the world has become a global village, the Indian film industry has reached out further to the international audiences too.

BIRTH OF THE INDIAN CINEMA

Bal Gangadhar Tilak admired movies and supported Dadasaheb Phalke in his attempts in creating a swadeshi cinema. He was the first in Marathi press to carry film reviews in his daily newspaper Kesari. Dadasaheb Phalke, released his epochal feature film Raja Harishchandra on 3rd May 1913 and thus he was called as the father of Indian Cinema. This was the first motion picture premiered on 21st April 1913.

Phalke made other films too- Shrikrishna Janma in 1917, Kaliya Mardan in 1919, etc which had strains of nationalism. His filma introduced mythological genre to the Indian Cinema merging his notion of Swadeshi into his films. Inspired from these the youth at that time started making patriotic films. For instance Baburao Painter and his Maharashtra Film Company made Kalyan Khajina(1924), Shahala Shah(1925) and others. These films stirred the masses into revolt. Several others in Bombay and Madras were making such silent movies. Raghupathi Venkaiah Naidu, S.S. Vasan, A.V. Meiyappan had set up production houses in

THE FIRST TALKIE

The silent era came to an end when Ardeshir Irani produced his first talkie, 'Alam Ara' in 1931. If Phalke was the father of Indian cinema, Irani was the father of the talkie. The talkies changed the face of Indian cinema.

Apart from looks, the actors not only needed a commanding voice but also singing skills, as music became a defining element in Indian cinema. The year also marked the beginning of the Talkie era in South Indian films. The first talkie films in Bengali (Jumai Shasthi), Telugu (Bhakta Prahlad) and Tamil (Kalidas) were also released in the same year.

Kalidas

Bhakt Prahlad

THE 1930s
The thirties is recognized as the decade of social protest in the history of Indian Cinema. Three big banners - Prabhat, Bombay Talkies and New Theatres gave the lead in making serious but gripping and entertaining films for all classes of the wide audience. A number of films making a strong plea against social injustice were also made in this period like V. Santharam's Duniya na Mane, Aadmi and Padosi; Franz Osten's Achut Duniya Na Mane Kanya.

Achut Kanya

Others are Damle & Fatehlal's Sant Tukaram; Mehboob's Watan, Ek hi Raasta and Aurat. For the first time Ardeshir Irani attempted a colour picutre in 1937 with Kisan Kanya.

Sant Tukaram

Kisan Kanya

The decade also witnessed the release of the first talkie films in Marathi (Ayodhiyecha Raja- 1932); Gujarati (Narasinh Mehta - 1932); Kannada (Dhurvkumar - 1934); Oriya (Sita Bibaha - 1934); Assamese(Joymati -1935); Punjabi (Sheela- 1935) and Malayalam (Balan - 1938).

Sheela

Sita Bibaha

Balan Ayodhiyecha Raja

THE TIMES OF WORLD WAR 2 AND THE INDEPENDENCE

The forties was a tumultuous decade; the first half was ravaged by war and the second saw drastic political changes all over the world.
In the middle of the Second World War in 1945 came 'Kismet' in 1943 starring Ashok Kumar which became one of the biggest hits in the history of Indian cinema. It had some bold themes - the first anti-hero and an unmarried pregnancy. It clearly showed that the filmmakers of the era were bolder than the times in which they were

A close relationship between epic consciousness and the art of cinema was being established. It was against this backdrop that filmmakers like V.Shantaram(Dr. Kotnis Ki Amar Kahani), Raj Kapoor(Barsaat and Aag) and Mehboob Khan(Roti) made their films. In the meantime, the film industry had made rapid strides in the South, where Tamil, Telugu and Kannada films were taking South India by storm.

By the late 1940s, films were being made in various Indian languages with religion being the dominant theme. 1940s to late 1950s was also the golden era of music. The duo Shankar Jaikishan(S-J), O.P. Nayyar, Madan Mohan, C. Ramchandra, Salil Chaudhury, Naushad, S.D. Burman all had their distinctive style. Each vied with the other to produce some of the most unforgettable melodies India has ever known.

S.D. Burman

S-J

O.P. Nayyar

THE GOLDEN AGE

50s and 60s were considered as the Golden Age of Indian cinema. The first International Film Festival of India held in early 1952 at Bombay had a great impact on the Indian Cinema. The big turning point came in 1955 with the arrival of Satyajit Ray and his classic Pather Panchali which opened up a new path leading the Indian film to the World Film scene.

Satyajit Ray

International recognition came to it with the Cannes award for best human document followed by an unprecedented crop of foreign and national awards. The impact of neorealism was evident in some distinguished films like Bimal Roy's Do Bigha ayal BaajZamin, Devadas and Madhumati; Rajkapoor's Boot Polish, Shri420 and Jagte Raho;V. Shantharam's Do Aankhen Barah Haath and Jhanak Jhanak Pe; Mehboob's Mother India; Gurudutt's Pyaasa and Kagaz Ke Phool and B.R.Chopra's Kaanoon.

The first Indo-Soviet co-production Pardesi by K.A.Abbas was also made during the fifties.

K.A. Abbas
The transition to colour and the consequent preference for escapist entertainment and greater reliance on stars brought about a complete change in the film industry. The sixties was a decade of mediocre films made mostly to please the distributors and to some extent, meet the demands of the box office.

The sixties began with a bang with the release of K.Asif's Mughal-E-Azam which set a record at the box-office. It was followed by notable productions, which include romantic, musicals, and melodramas of a better quality. Rajkapoor's Jis Desh Mein Ganga Behti Hai and Sangam; Dilip Kumar's Gungajamuna; Gurudutt's Sahib Bibi aur Gulam; Dev Anand's Guide; Bimal Roy's Bandini; S.Mukherji's Junglee; Sunil Dutt's Mujhe Jeene Do and the experimental Yaadein; Basu Bhattacharya's Teesri Kasam; Pramod Chakravorthy's Love in Tokyo; Ramanand Sagar's Arzoo; Sakhti Samantha's Aradhana; Hrishikesh Mukherji's Aashirwad and Anand; B.R. Chopra's Waqt; Manoj Kumar's Upkar and Prasad Production's Milan were the significant Hindi films of the decade.

Among the regional languages, Malayalam cinema derived much of its strength from literature during the sixties. Malayalam cinema hit the head lines for the first time when Raim Kariat's Chemmeen (1965) won the President's Gold Medal. Towards the end of the decade, Mrinal Sen's Bhuvan Shome, signalled the beginning of the new wave in Indian Cinema. A cinema of social significance and artistic sincerity, presenting a modern, humanistic perspective more durable than the fantasy world of the popular cinema had developed by then.

1970s

The 70s completely changed the way films were made, especially in Hindi film industry. Changing social norms and changing economies influenced movies and the companies that made them. The narrative style changed. The story structure changed. Characters changed. Content changed. Masala films were the demand of the time. The genre promised instant attraction and had great entertainment value. The seventies further-widened the gap between multistar big budgeted off beat films.

The popular Hindi hits of the decade include Kamal Amrohi's Pakeeza; Rajkapoor's Bobby; Devar's Haathi Mere Saathi, Ramesh Sippy's Sholay, Zanjeer, Deewar,Khoon Pasina, Yaadon Ki Baarat, Yash Chopras Kabhi Kabhi;Dharamveer, Amar Akbar Anthony, Hum Kisise Kum Nahin, and Muquaddar Ka Sikandar. Of these majority of the films were action oriented with revenge as the dominating theme. It was the age of the angry young man and Amitabh Bachchan rose to prominence with the success of Sholay, Zanjeer and Deewar.

While Dev Anand, Rajesh Khanna, Jitendra and Dharmendra continued to bask in the glory of back to back hits, the actresses were not far behind. Right from the time of Savitri, Vyjayanthi Mala, Nargis, Waheeda Rahman and Sharmila Tagore to Sridevi, Rekha, Smita Patil, Hema Malini, several actresses became the heartthrobs of India.

Down in the South, the new wave cinema originated in Karnataka and Kerala. Pattabhi Rama Reddy's Samskara (1970) and Adoor Gopalakrishnan's Swayamvaram (1972) were the trend setters in Kannada and Malayalam respectively. This continued with a series of socially conspicuous films like Chomana Dudi, Ghatasradha, Arangetram, Chuvanna Vithukal and many more.

Chuvanna Vithukal

Chomana Dudi

The Hindi new wave reached its bloom period towards the end of the seventies with the coming of film makers like Saeed Mirza (Albert Pinto Ko gussa Kyon aata hai, Aravind Desai ki Ajeeb Daastan), Rabindra Dharmaraj's (Chakr), Sai Paranjpe (Sparsh), Musafar Ali (Gaman) and Biplab Roy Chowdhari (Shodh).

1980s and 90s

The new cinema movement continued with full spirit in the next decade (eighties) also. Shyam Benegal presented some good movies like Manthan, Bhumika, Nishant, Junoon, and Trikal. Nihlani's Aaghat and Tamas were remarkable works. Other important films with new style of treatment include Damul(Prakash Jha), 36 Chowringhee Lane(Aparna Sen), Umrao Jaan (Musafir Ali), Andhi Gali (Buddhadeb Dasgupta), Aajka Robin Hood (Tapan

The new wave masters of Kerala, Adoor and Aravindan, consolidated their position in the 80s with their films Elippathayam, Mukhamukham, Anantharam, Esthappan, Pokkuveyil, Chidambaram, and Oridath. Elippathayam won the prestigious British film Institute award for 1982. Shaji N. Karun's maiden film Piravi (1988) bagged several national and international awards and was shown in nearly forty film festivals. Meera Nair, the young woman director, won the Golden Camera award at Cannes for her first film Salaam Bombay in 1989.

Chidambaram

The late eighties and early nineties saw the revival of the musical love stories in Hindi cinema. Mr. India, Tezaab, Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak, Maine Pyar Kiya, Chandni, Tridev, Hum, Ghayal, Saudagar, Rakhwala, Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikander,Heena,Hum Hain Rahi Pyarke, Baazigar, Aaina, Yeh Dillagi, Hum Aapke Hai Kaun, Krantiveer, Raja, Rangeela were some of the popular Hindi films of the last decade.

90s was a mixed genre of romantic, thrillers, action and comedy films. A stark upgrade was seen on the canvas as technology gifted the industry Dolby digital sound effects, advanced special effects, choreography and international appeal. The development brought about investments from the corporate sector along with finer scripts and performances. It was time to shift focus to aesthetic appeal. Stars like Shah Rukh Khan, Rajnikanth, Madhuri Dixit, Salman Khan, Aamir Khan, Chiranjeevi, Juhi Chawla,etc.,. enriched Indian cinema with their performances.

From Bengal, Orissa, Assam and Manipur came films like Tahader Katha, Bagh Bahadur, Charachar (Buddhadeb Dasgupta), Uttoran (Sandip Ray), Wheel Chair(Tapan Sinha), Unishe April (Rituparno Ghosh), Adimimansa, Lalvanya Preethi (A.K.Bir),etc. In the South Malayalam Cinema presented some notable films. They include Vasthuhara (Aravindan), Vidheyan (Adoor),etc. From Tamil and Telugu cinema, there came few films like Anjali, Roja and Bombay (Mani Ratnam),etc. English films like Miss. Beatty's Children (Pamela Rooks), and English August (Dev Benegal) were also produced during this period.

THE NEW MILLENNIUM

Now, the Indian cinema has reached the new millennium and a revolution of sorts has happened in terms of defining glamour, entertainment, commercial values, budgeting, marketing and box office reports. Today Indian Cinema ,especially, Hindi cinema is not only popular in India but in parts of the Middle East, Pakistan, UK and virtually every other place where Indians live. Films like Lagaan, Salaam Bombay and Monsoon Wedding making the international market sit up and take notice definitely indicate that India is poised for bigger things as far as Cinema goes. Monsoon Wedding was the all-time top 10 foreign box-office hits in America.

Apart from regular screenings at major international film festivals, the overseas market contributed a sizeable chunk to Bollywoods box office collections. Regular foreign Investments made by major global studios such as 20th Century Fox, Sony Pictures, and Warner Bros put a stamp of confirmation that Bollywood had etched itself on the global podium. Emergence of new age filmmakers like Anurag Kashyap, Rajkumar Hirani, Dibakar Banerjee ,Vishal Bhardwaj,etc., has changed the scene. There are movies on a number of themes. There are comedies, thrillers, horror, fiction, movies with message like Taare Zameen Pe, Vicky Donor, Munnabhai MBBS, Chak De India, Lajja, and many more.

CELEBRATING THESE 100 YEARS

DELHI FESTIVAL CELEBRATING THE 100 YEARS

In a show of solidarity and unity, representatives from India's multi-billion dollar, dynamic cinema world came together for the inauguration of the Centenary Film Festival on 25TH April 2013. The idea behind the fest on Indian cinema, the nation's "soft power", is to create a week-long event, which "truly epitomizes the ethos of the country".

A highlight of the inaugural programme was the screening of silent film Throw of Dice, with a live musical orchestra by maestro Nishat Khan. The foyer area saw a display of old cameras with descriptions, which clearly gave one an idea of the progress the country's cinema industry has made over a century since silent film Raja Harishchandra was made in 1913. Over the days, the festival will host screenings of some classics as well as contemporary Indian films by master directors such as Bimal Roy, Guru Dutt, Shyam

The fest is being celebrated in Siri Fort Auditorium as well in venues such as Jamia Milia University, Jawaharlal Nehru University and India Habitat Center. Another key highlight of the festival is the 'Cut-Uncut', a 3-day workshop conceived and being executed by members of the Central Board of Film Certification. A special Satyajit Ray retrospective and display of artwork of Ray, has also been arranged to pay homage. A play on the life and times of Dadasaheb Phalke by Aamir Raza Hussain would mark the end of the festival on April 30, while the centenary celebrations will culminate in the National Film Awards ceremony at Vigyan Bhavan on May 3.

CANNES INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

The 66th edition of Cannes International Film Festival has India as the guest country this time and is thus celebrating the 100 years of Indian cinema. The festival is an eleven day event starting May 15, 2013 and it will see screening of three Indian movies - Bombay Talkies, Monsoon Shooting and Dabba - in different sections. It will open with the Amitabh Bachchan-Leonardo DiCaprio starrer The Great Gatsby. Vidya Balan will be a part of the jury. The jury will select films in competition section for the awards, which will be announced during the closing ceremony May 26. Sonam Kapoor has shot for a special feature with a French team who has come down to capture a day in the life of a Bollywood celebrity. They have been investing time apprehending Sonam's routine between her shooting and promotion schedule.