History of Bollywood
The first films India watched were not made in Bollywood but cinema had indeed arrived on
India’s shores. The year was 1896, and thanks to the country’s colonial rulers, it was the
Lumiere Brothers who introduced the art of cinema to the sub-continent. Bombay, as it was then
called, was the first Indian city to screen Cinematography, six short films by these cinematic
pioneers.
But it was a portrait photographer called Harischandra Sakharam Bhatavdekar who made
Indian ‘motion picture' history. His short ‘reality’ film screened in 1899 was called The Wrestlers
and was a simple recording of a local wrestling match.
Silent Era to Talkies
It was only after the turn of the century that Indian entertainment underwent a sea change
when the Father of Indian Cinema, Dadasaheb Phalke, released his pathbreaking film of the
Silent Era, Raja Harishchandra. The film, based on a mythological character, was released in
1913 and was India’s first full-length feature film. Yes, Bollywood had finally arrived!
The growth of technology and the excitement it generated the world over eventually gave birth
of India’s first ‘talking and singing’ film – Alam Ara made by Ardeshir Irani and screened in
Bombay in 1931.
Finally, India’s actors had found a voice. They could talk, they could shout, they could even cry,
and they could do one more thing – sing for their audiences! It was a gift that remains the
signature of the quintessential Hindi film to date.
Developments in the world of Indian cinema were rapid and the 1930s and 1940s saw the rise
of film personalities such as Debaki Bose, Chetan Anand, S S Vasan and Nitin Bose, among
others.
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
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History of Bollywood
various Indian languages with religion being the dominant theme.
Golden Age
India’s struggle for independence in the 1950s finally parted the curtain on the Golden Age of
Indian cinema. This historic period provided a strong impetus to the industry, with themes
changing to social issues relevant at the time. Sure they were entertaining but the movies were
now also a potent medium to educate the masses.
But it was the Golden Age – 1950s and 1960s – that produced some of India’s most critically
acclaimed films and memorable actors of all time. Among those in Bollywood’s hall of fame are
Guru Dutt, Mehboob Khan, Raj Kapoor, Balraj Sahani, Nargis, Bimal Roy, Meena Kumari,
Madhubala and Dilip Kumar.
So while the Guru Dutts and Bimal Roys held audiences in a trance, Indian cinema moved one
step further with the release of K Asif`s Mughal-e-Azam in 1960. The film kickstarted a trail of
romantic movies all over India.
While Indian commercial cinema enjoyed popularity among movie-goers, Indian art cinema did
not go unnoticed. Adoor Gopalakrishnan, Ritwik Ghatak, Aravindan, Satyajit Ray, Shaji Karun
and several other art film directors were making movies that took India to international fame and
glory.
The Masala Movie
The masala film – the quintessential Bollywood entertainer – burst onto the scene only in the
1970s. And audiences were enthralled by the histrionics of actors such as Rajesh Khanna,
Sanjeev Kumar, Waheeda Rehman, Asha Parekh, Tanuja and others.
This was Bollywood’s heyday, a time when director Ramesh Sippy gave us his iconoclastic
Sholay (1975). The film, which has been internationally acclaimed, also clinched the title of
‘superstar’ for Amitabh Bachchan, who already had well over 30 films under his belt by then.
The 1980s saw the rise of several woman directors such as Aparna Sen, Prema Karnath and
Meera Nair. It was also the decade when sultry siren Rekha wooed audiences with her stunning
performance in Umrao Jaan (1981).
Technology Rules
The 1990s ushered in a mixed genre of romantic films, thrillers, action movies and comedy
films. Gradually, the face of Indian cinema was changing once again. Technology now gave us
Dolby digital sound effects, advanced special effects, choreography and international appeal.
This brought investments from the corporate sector along with finer scripts and performances.
It was time to shift focus to aesthetic appeal. And stars like Shah Rukh Khan, Rajnikanth,
Madhuri Dixit, Aamir Khan, Chiranjeevi, Juhi Chawla and Hrithik Roshan began to explore ways
to use new techniques to enrich Indian cinema with their performances.
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History of Bollywood
Global Appeal
Indian cinema finally found global mass appeal at the turn of the 21st century. As the world
became a global village, the industry reached out further to international audiences.
Apart from regular screenings at major international film festivals, the overseas market
contributes a sizeable chunk to Bollywood’s box office collections. Investments made by major
global studios such as 20th Century Fox, Sony Pictures, and Warner Bros was confirmation that
Bollywood had etched itself on the global psyche.
Prominent Indian corporate firms such as Zee, UTV and Adlabs also jumped onto the Bollywood
bandwagon, to both produce and distribute films. This coupled with the multiplex boom across
India made fame and fortune soar to new heights.
Such was the excitement in the industry that by 2003, as many as 30 film production companies
had been listed on the National Stock Exchange.
Cinema in India remains the single largest entertainer to date. And despite technology such as
Direct-to-Home TV bringing the movies straight into the living room, the marquee still rules. var
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