A Short Guide to Popular Indian Cinema

Popular Indian cinema, otherwise known as Bollywood, has been screening to Melbourne’s Indian community since May, 1997. For them, screening schedules were sent via letters, or through email lists taken from the grocery store/video club or the community paper. Films would be screened without subtitles: That was when Bollywood cinema was so unpopular that no one - other than the Indian community - wanted to know about it. Not anymore. Bollywood cinema is now firmly centre stage — as the “Beginners Guide to Bollywood”, at the Nova Cinema in Carlton from November 20- 27, 2003 shows.

The Bollywood film industry, which produces between 700-1000 films annually, and which is itself defined against a multitude of regional and art-house film industries within India, is the largest in the world. This is an interesting by-product of the British colonial raj which, during their ‘stay’, heavily censored the films. (There are some interesting scenes in pre/post English ruled- Bollywood that has revolutionary undertones and fanciful dreams of a united subcontinent. Mehboob Khan’s 1957 blockbuster Mother India, for instance, which holds the all-time Bollywood box office

But how to KNOW? I must say that I have been watching these films, in India and Melbourne for some time. I have laughed and cried but I have also groaned… when the ‘mix’ is right the results are fun. When it’s not its just not…

I warn you now – Devdas is three hours long, plus intermission. ( It was classified as “Emotional Musical Romantic” on the Planet Bollywood website!!)

Some topics in this essay:
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