98-595: Raj Kanwar (28 June 1961 – 3 February 2012) was an Indian film director, writer, and producer of Hindi films based in Mumbai , India. He was educated at Col. Brown Cambridge School in Dehradun . He has two sons (with his wife Anita Kanwar), Karan Raj Kanwar and Abhay Kanwar, who have worked as film directors and producers. Filmmaker K. Pappu is his elder brother. On 3 February 2012, he died in Singapore due to
196-450: A fakir (Muhammad Wazir Khan) tells the king that the former wife will give birth to a boy, later named Qamar ( Master Vithal ), but the child will die following his 18th birthday if Navbahaar cannot find the necklace he asks for. Meanwhile, the king finds out that Dilbahaar falls for the senapati Adil ( Prithviraj Kapoor ), leading the king to arrest him and evicts his pregnant wife, who later gives birth to Alam Ara ( Zubeida ). Irani
294-573: A parallel cinema movement. Although the movement (emphasising social realism ) was led by Bengali cinema , it also began gaining prominence in Hindi cinema. Early examples of parallel cinema include Dharti Ke Lal (1946), directed by Khwaja Ahmad Abbas and based on the Bengal famine of 1943 , Neecha Nagar (1946) directed by Chetan Anand and written by Khwaja Ahmad Abbas, and Bimal Roy's Do Bigha Zamin (1953). Their critical acclaim and
392-407: A railway track , it was filmed mostly during the nighttime to avoid noise from the active trains. Following filming, Ardeshir Irani finished the sound recording using the single-system recording . Firozshah Mistry and B. Irani served as the music directors. Alam Ara was released on 14 March 1931 and performed well at the box office. Critics were appreciative, with the performance and songs getting
490-537: A vigilante or anti-hero whose suppressed rage voiced the anguish of the urban poor. Hindi films have been a significant form of soft power for India, increasing its influence and changing overseas perceptions of India. In Germany , Indian stereotypes included bullock carts , beggars, sacred cows, corrupt politicians, and catastrophes before Bollywood and the IT industry transformed global perceptions of India. According to author Roopa Swaminathan, "Bollywood cinema
588-523: A Hong Kong remake, The Brothers (1979), which inspired John Woo 's internationally acclaimed breakthrough A Better Tomorrow (1986); the latter was a template for Hong Kong action cinema 's heroic bloodshed genre. "Angry young man" 1970s epics such as Deewaar and Amar Akbar Anthony (1977) also resemble the heroic-bloodshed genre of 1980s Hong Kong action cinema. The influence of filmi may be seen in popular music worldwide. Technopop pioneers Haruomi Hosono and Ryuichi Sakamoto of
686-442: A colour version of Mother India . However, colour did not become a popular feature until the late 1950s. At this time, lavish romantic musicals and melodramas were cinematic staples. The decade of the 1940s saw an expansion of Bombay cinema's commercial market and its presence in the national consciousness. The year 1943 saw the arrival of Indian cinema's first 'blockbuster' offering, the movie Kismet , which grossed in excess of
784-501: A contemporary urban context and anguished urban poor. By the mid-1970s, romantic confections had given way to gritty, violent crime films and action films about gangsters (the Bombay underworld ) and bandits ( dacoits ). Salim-Javed's writing and Amitabh Bachchan's acting popularised the trend with films such as Zanjeer and (particularly) Deewaar , a crime film inspired by Gunga Jumna which pitted "a policeman against his brother,
882-590: A film of scenes from that show, The Flower of Persia (1898). The Wrestlers (1899) by H. S. Bhatavdekar showed a wrestling match at the Hanging Gardens in Bombay . Dadasaheb Phalke 's silent film Raja Harishchandra (1913) is the first feature-length film made in India. The film, being silent, had English , Marathi , and Hindi -language intertitles . By the 1930s, the Indian film industry as
980-497: A gang leader based on real-life smuggler Haji Mastan " (Bachchan); according to Danny Boyle , Deewaar was "absolutely key to Indian cinema". In addition to Bachchan, several other actors followed by riding the crest of the trend (which lasted into the early 1990s). Actresses from the era include Hema Malini , Jaya Bachchan , Raakhee , Shabana Azmi , Zeenat Aman , Parveen Babi , Rekha , Dimple Kapadia , Smita Patil , Jaya Prada and Padmini Kolhapure . The name "Bollywood"
1078-546: A genre of dacoit films , in turn defined by Gunga Jumna (1961). Written and produced by Dilip Kumar, Gunga Jumna was a dacoit crime drama about two brothers on opposite sides of the law (a theme which became common in Indian films during the 1970s). Some of the best-known epic films of Hindi cinema were also produced at this time, such as K. Asif 's Mughal-e-Azam (1960). Other acclaimed mainstream Hindi filmmakers during this period included Kamal Amrohi and Vijay Bhatt . The three most popular male Indian actors of
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#17327906402621176-530: A global presence". Scholar Brigitte Schulze has written that Indian films, most notably Mehboob Khan 's Mother India (1957), played a key role in shaping the Republic of India 's national identity in the early years after independence from the British Raj ; the film conveyed a sense of Indian nationalism to urban and rural citizens alike. Bollywood has long influenced Indian society and culture as
1274-783: A good film is generally referred to as paisa vasool , (literally "money's worth"). Songs, dances, love triangles, comedy and dare-devil thrills are combined in a three-hour show (with an intermission). These are called masala films , after the Hindi word for a spice mixture. Like masalas , they are a mixture of action, comedy and romance; most have heroes who can fight off villains single-handedly. Bollywood plots have tended to be melodramatic , frequently using formulaic ingredients such as star-crossed lovers, angry parents, love triangles, family ties, sacrifice, political corruption, kidnapping, villains, kind-hearted courtesans , long-lost relatives and siblings, reversals of fortune and serendipity . Parallel cinema films tended to be less popular at
1372-673: A kidney ailment. Kanwar began his career directing plays in Delhi. He then moved to Mumbai, where he worked as an assistant to directors like Shekhar Kapur and Raj Kumar Santoshi . His directorial debut was Deewana . Released in 1992, the film was a box office Blockbuster and marked the screen debut of Shahrukh Khan . He directed several other box office hits like Laadla (1994), Jaan (1996), Jeet (1996), Judaai (1997), Daag: The Fire (1999) and Badal (2000). Kanwar discovered actors like Lara Dutta and Priyanka Chopra , whom he cast in his film Andaaz in 2003. His last film
1470-464: A major influence. During the early 20th century, Urdu was the lingua franca of popular cultural performance across northern India and established in popular performance art traditions such as nautch dancing, Urdu poetry , and Parsi theater. Urdu and related Hindi dialects were the most widely understood across northern India, and Hindustani became the standard language of early Indian talkies. Films based on " Persianate adventure-romances" led to
1568-402: A new generation of popular actors, including the three Khans : Aamir Khan , Shah Rukh Khan , and Salman Khan , who have starred in most of the top ten highest-grossing Bollywood films . The Khans and have had successful careers since the late 1980s and early 1990s, and have dominated the Indian box office for three decades. Shah Rukh Khan was the most successful Indian actor for most of
1666-414: A one-year hiatus from acting, perfecting her ability to speak Hindustani. Irani initially wanted the debutant Mehboob Khan to be the male lead, but later changed his mind and wanted a "more commercially-viable" actor, an opportunity taken by Master Vithal—one of the most successful filmmakers of Indian silent cinema. In later years, Khan would admit that it left him unhappy. When Vithal decided to star in
1764-746: A popular genre of " Arabian Nights cinema". Scholars Chaudhuri Diptakirti and Rachel Dwyer and screenwriter Javed Akhtar identify Urdu literature as a major influence on Hindi cinema. Most of the screenwriters and scriptwriters of classic Hindi cinema came from Urdu literary backgrounds, from Khwaja Ahmad Abbas and Akhtar ul Iman to Salim–Javed and Rahi Masoom Raza ; a handful came from other Indian literary traditions, such as Bengali and Hindi literature . Most of Hindi cinema's classic scriptwriters wrote primarily in Urdu, including Salim-Javed, Gulzar , Rajinder Singh Bedi , Inder Raj Anand , Rahi Masoom Raza and Wajahat Mirza . Urdu poetry and
1862-641: A renaissance of Western musical films such as Chicago , Rent , and Dreamgirls . Indian film composer A. R. Rahman wrote the music for Andrew Lloyd Webber 's Bombay Dreams , and a musical version of Hum Aapke Hain Koun was staged in London's West End. The sports film Lagaan (2001) was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film , and two other Hindi films (2002's Devdas and 2006's Rang De Basanti ) were nominated for
1960-404: A scathing review, saying that "[t]hroughout, the blindest groping for fundamental facts was evident"; the reviewer wrote that the laboratory processing and sound recording were the biggest issues of the film. A writer of The Times of India observed how the actors lacked experience in talking near microphones, which made them sound like they were screaming. Indian Talkie (a magazine published by
2058-513: A similar influence on Amitabh Bachchan , Naseeruddin Shah , Shah Rukh Khan and Nawazuddin Siddiqui . Veteran actresses such as Suraiya , Nargis , Sumitra Devi , Madhubala , Meena Kumari , Waheeda Rehman , Nutan , Sadhana , Mala Sinha and Vyjayanthimala have had their share of influence on Hindi cinema. While commercial Hindi cinema was thriving, the 1950s also saw the emergence of
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#17327906402622156-514: A turning point of Ardeshir Irani's career and gave him a reputation as the "father of Indian talkies". Impressed by it, producer Birendranath Sircar acquired the recording equipment of the film and contacted Deming to work with him in Calcutta (present-day Kolkata). Irani used the sets of the film to shoot his next production venture, titled Kalidas , which would become the first Indian multilingual film following its release in 1931. Alam Ara
2254-459: A whole was producing over 200 films per year. The first Indian sound film, Ardeshir Irani 's Alam Ara (1931), made in Hindustani language, was commercially successful. With a great demand for talkies and musicals, Hindustani cinema (as Hindi cinema was then known as) and the other language film industries quickly switched to sound films. The 1930s and 1940s were tumultuous times; India
2352-413: Is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (former name of Mumbai) and " Hollywood ". The industry is a part of the larger Indian cinema , which also includes South Indian cinema and other smaller film industries . The term 'Bollywood', often mistakenly used to refer to Indian cinema as a whole, only refers to Hindi-language films, with Indian cinema being an umbrella term that includes all the film industries in
2450-482: Is linked to economic liberalization in India during the early 1990s. Early in the decade, the pendulum swung back toward family-centered romantic musicals. Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak (1988) was followed by blockbusters such as Maine Pyar Kiya (1989), Hum Aapke Hain Kaun (1994), Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995), Raja Hindustani (1996), Dil To Pagal Hai (1997) and Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998), introducing
2548-504: Is listed in "40 Firsts in Indian Cinema" by NDTV in 2013, "100 Filmfare Days" by Filmfare in 2014, and "70 Iconic Films of Indian Cinema" by Mint in 2017. In 2011, Google made a doodle to celebrate its 80th release anniversary, featuring Vithal and Zubeida. Writer Renu Saran features the film in the book 101 Hit Films of Indian Cinema (2014). In the same year, a 2015 calendar titled "The Beginnings of Indian Cinema"
2646-467: Is one of the strongest global cultural ambassadors of a new India." Its role in expanding India's global influence is comparable to Hollywood's similar role with American influence. Monroe Township , Middlesex County , New Jersey , in the New York metropolitan area , has been profoundly impacted by Bollywood; this U.S. township has displayed one of the fastest growth rates of its Indian population in
2744-818: Is recorded at the same time of shooting. After filming ended, Alam Ara was edited by Ezra Mir and its final reel length was 10,500 ft (3,200 m). In 2012, the magazine Outlook reported that the cast and crew were pleased to be parts of the film and ready to receive lesser pays for their work. The soundtrack to Alam Ara was released by Saregama , and has a total of seven songs: "De De Khuda Ke Naam Pe Pyaare", "Badla Dilwayega Yaar Ab Tu Sitamgaroon Se", "Rootha Hai Aasmaan", "Teri Kateelee Nigaahon Ne Mara", "De Dil Ko Aaram Aey Saaki Gulfaam", "Bhar Bhar Ke Jaam Pila Ja", and "Daras Bin Morey Hain Tarse Nayna Pyare". "De De Khuda Ke Naam Pe Pyaare", sung by Muhammad Wazir Khan, became popular at
2842-491: The Hindustan Times interviewed him in 2006, he recalled it as "a moment in history, when the public coming out of the show wouldn't stop talking about the film they'd seen, that also talked!" According to Daily Bhaskar , crowds of people would stand in line from 9:00 am although the first show occurred at 3:00 pm. As a solution, police were assigned to the theatre and allowed to use batons to control
2940-559: The BAFTA Award for Best Film Not in the English Language . Danny Boyle 's Slumdog Millionaire (2008), which won four Golden Globes and eight Academy Awards , was inspired by mainstream Hindi films and is considered an "homage to Hindi commercial cinema". It was also inspired by Mumbai-underworld crime films, such as Deewaar (1975), Satya (1998), Company (2002) and Black Friday (2007). Deewaar had
3038-521: The British Film Institute declared it as the most important of any lost films produced in India. A king and his two wives, Navbahaar and Dilbahaar, are childless. Soon, a fakir tells Navbahaar she will give birth to a boy but she must find a necklace tied around a fish's neck—which will appear once at the palace's lake—if she wants her son to live past his 18th birthday. The boy is named Qamar. Besides that, Dilbahaar has an affair with
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3136-528: The Film Federation of India from 1931 to 1956) called the film "the birth cry of the talkie". Alam Ara is widely regarded as the first sound film of India. It has been described as the rise of the Indian cinema of the early 1930s, and in its 2013 report, The Times of India added, "... edging out the advantage enjoyed by imported films in the silent era, when the largest share of the Indian market
3234-556: The Western Hemisphere , increasing from 256 (0.9%) as of the 2000 Census to an estimated 5,943 (13.6%) as of 2017, representing a 2,221.5% (a multiple of 23) numerical increase over that period, including many affluent professionals and senior citizens as well as charitable benefactors to the COVID-19 relief efforts in India in official coordination with Monroe Township, as well as actors with second homes. During
3332-594: The Yellow Magic Orchestra produced a 1978 electronic album, Cochin Moon , based on an experimental fusion of electronic music and Bollywood-inspired Indian music. Truth Hurts ' 2002 song " Addictive ", produced by DJ Quik and Dr. Dre , was lifted from Lata Mangeshkar 's "Thoda Resham Lagta Hai" in Jyoti (1981). The Black Eyed Peas ' Grammy Award winning 2005 song " Don't Phunk with My Heart "
3430-562: The fakir . When the necklace appears on Qamar's 18th birthday, she secretly replaces it with a fake one, which soon results in Qamar's death. His family, however, does not bury his body and starts looking for the fakir to find out what went wrong. As a result, Qamar comes alive every night when Dilbahaar removes the necklace from her neck and later dies when she wears it in the morning. Apart from that, Ara knows about her innocent father's suffering, vowing to release him from prison. On her visit to
3528-736: The ghazal tradition strongly influenced filmi ( Bollywood lyrics ). Javed Akhtar was also greatly influenced by Urdu novels by Pakistani author Ibn-e-Safi , such as the Jasoosi Dunya and Imran series of detective novels; they inspired, for example, famous Bollywood characters such as Gabbar Singh in Sholay (1975) and Mogambo in Mr. India (1987). Todd Stadtman identifies several foreign influences on 1970s commercial Bollywood masala films , including New Hollywood , Italian exploitation films , and Hong Kong martial arts cinema . After
3626-461: The overseas Indian diaspora , have also been inspired by Bollywood music. Hindi films are primarily musicals, and are expected to have catchy song-and-dance numbers woven into the script. A film's success often depends on the quality of such musical numbers. A film's music and song and dance portions are usually produced first and these are often released before the film itself, increasing its audience. Indian audiences expect value for money, and
3724-531: The socio-economic and socio-political realities of contemporary India. They channeled growing popular discontent and disillusionment and state failure to ensure welfare and well-being at a time of inflation, shortages, loss of confidence in public institutions, increasing crime and the unprecedented growth of slums . Salim-Javed and Bachchan's films dealt with urban poverty, corruption and organised crime; they were perceived by audiences as anti-establishment , often with an "angry young man" protagonist presented as
3822-547: The 1950s and 1960s were Dilip Kumar , Raj Kapoor , and Dev Anand , each with a unique acting style. Kapoor adopted Charlie Chaplin 's tramp persona; Anand modeled himself on suave Hollywood stars like Gregory Peck and Cary Grant , and Kumar pioneered a form of method acting which predated Hollywood method actors such as Marlon Brando . Kumar, who was described as "the ultimate method actor" by Satyajit Ray , inspired future generations of Indian actors. Much like Brando's influence on Robert De Niro and Al Pacino , Kumar had
3920-470: The 1950s and early 1960s and some won major prizes at the festival. Guru Dutt , overlooked during his lifetime, received belated international recognition during the 1980s. Film critics polled by the British magazine Sight & Sound included several of Dutt's films in a 2002 list of greatest films , and Time's All-Time 100 Movies lists Pyaasa as one of the greatest films of all time. During
4018-563: The 1970s has been the masala film , which freely mixes different genres including action , comedy , romance , drama and melodrama along with musical numbers . Masala films generally fall under the musical film genre, of which Indian cinema has been the largest producer since the 1960s when it exceeded the American film industry's total musical output after musical films declined in the West. The first Indian talkie , Alam Ara (1931),
Raj Kanwar - Misplaced Pages Continue
4116-493: The 1970s. Although the art film bent of the Film Finance Corporation was criticised during a 1976 Committee on Public Undertakings investigation which accused the corporation of not doing enough to encourage commercial cinema, the decade saw the rise of commercial cinema with films such as Sholay (1975) which consolidated Amitabh Bachchan 's position as a star. The devotional classic Jai Santoshi Ma
4214-457: The 1980s was Mira Nair 's Salaam Bombay! (1988), which won the Camera d'Or at the 1988 Cannes Film Festival and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film . Hindi cinema experienced another period of box-office decline during the late 1980s with due to concerns by audiences over increasing violence and a decline in musical quality, and a rise in video piracy. One of
4312-467: The 1990s and 2000s, and Aamir Khan has been the most successful Indian actor since the mid 2000s. Action and comedy films, starring such actors as Akshay Kumar and Govinda . The decade marked the entrance of new performers in art and independent films, some of which were commercially successful. The most influential example was Satya (1998), directed by Ram Gopal Varma and written by Anurag Kashyap . Its critical and commercial success led to
4410-510: The 2000s, Hindi cinema began influencing musical films in the Western world and was instrumental role in reviving the American musical film. Baz Luhrmann said that his musical film, Moulin Rouge! (2001), was inspired by Bollywood musicals; the film incorporated a Bollywood-style dance scene with a song from the film China Gate . The critical and financial success of Moulin Rouge! began
4508-411: The 2010s, the industry saw established stars such as making big-budget masala films like Dabangg (2010), Singham (2011) , Ek Tha Tiger (2012), Son of Sardaar (2012), Rowdy Rathore (2012), Chennai Express (2013), Kick (2014) and Happy New Year (2014) with much-younger actresses. Although the films were often not praised by critics, they were commercially successful. Some of
4606-691: The Bombay film industry was closely linked to the Lahore film industry (known as "Lollywood"; now part of the Pakistani film industry ); both produced films in Hindustani (also known as Hindi-Urdu), the lingua franca of northern and central India. Another centre of Hindustani-language film production was the Bengal film industry in Calcutta , Bengal Presidency (now Kolkata, West Bengal ), which produced Hindustani-language films and local Bengali language films. Many actors, filmmakers and musicians from
4704-810: The Bombay film industry's position as the preeminent center for film production in India. The period from the late 1940s to the early 1960s, after India's independence , is regarded by film historians as the Golden Age of Hindi cinema. Some of the most critically acclaimed Hindi films of all time were produced during this time. Examples include Pyaasa (1957) and Kaagaz Ke Phool (1959), directed by Guru Dutt and written by Abrar Alvi ; Awaara (1951) and Shree 420 (1955), directed by Raj Kapoor and written by Khwaja Ahmad Abbas , and Aan (1952), directed by Mehboob Khan and starring Dilip Kumar . The films explored social themes, primarily dealing with working-class life in India (particularly urban life) in
4802-405: The Indian economy and a demand for quality entertainment in this era led the country's film industry to new heights in production values, cinematography and screenwriting as well as technical advances in areas such as special effects and animation. Some of the largest production houses, among them Yash Raj Films and Dharma Productions were the producers of new modern films. Some popular films of
4900-561: The Lahore industry migrated to the Bombay industry during the 1940s, including actors K. L. Saigal , Prithviraj Kapoor , Dilip Kumar and Dev Anand as well as playback singers Mohammed Rafi , Noorjahan and Shamshad Begum . Around the same time, filmmakers and actors from the Calcutta film industry began migrating to Bombay; as a result, Bombay became the center of Hindustani-language film production. The 1947 partition of India divided
4998-686: The biggest entertainment industry; many of the country's musical, dancing, wedding and fashion trends are Bollywood-inspired. Bollywood fashion trendsetters have included Madhubala in Mughal-e-Azam (1960) and Madhuri Dixit in Hum Aapke Hain Koun..! (1994). Hindi films have also had a socio-political impact on Indian society, reflecting Indian politics . In classic 1970s Bollywood films, Bombay underworld crime films written by Salim–Javed and starring Amitabh Bachchan such as Zanjeer (1973) and Deewaar (1975) reflected
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#17327906402625096-552: The blockbuster Sholay (1975), written by Salim-Javed and starring Amitabh Bachchan. It combined the dacoit film conventions of Mother India and Gunga Jumna with spaghetti Westerns , spawning the Dacoit Western (also known as the curry Western ) which was popular during the 1970s. Some Hindi filmmakers, such as Shyam Benegal , Mani Kaul , Kumar Shahani , Ketan Mehta , Govind Nihalani and Vijaya Mehta , continued to produce realistic parallel cinema throughout
5194-563: The box office. A large Indian diaspora in English-speaking countries and increased Western influence in India have nudged Bollywood films closer to Hollywood. Alam Ara Alam Ara ( transl. Ornament of the World ) is a 1931 Indian Hindustani -language historical fantasy film directed and produced by Ardeshir Irani . It revolves around a king and his two wives, Navbahaar and Dilbahaar, who are childless; soon,
5292-531: The box-office earnings of Alam Ara are not available, but many historians believed that the film performed well. According to the Encyclopaedia of Hindi Cinema in 2003, the film was more successful than Shirin Farhad ; a 2006 report from The Hindu stated that it became an "instant hit". Similar thoughts were given by Roy Armes, in his book titled Third World Film Making and the West (1987), calling
5390-445: The common defects of Indian productions" and ended a trend where the previous Indian films always promoting social values in their plot. On 2 April 1931, The Bombay Chronicle took note of Irani's "thoughtful" direction and applauded the performances from Vithal, Zubeida and Kapoor, which the reviewer thought had evolved dramatic values that silent films could not do. In the magazine's June 1932 issue, American Cinematographer gave
5488-663: The conventions which were once strictly associated with parallel cinema. "Bollywood" is a portmanteau derived from Bombay (the former name of Mumbai ) and "Hollywood", a shorthand reference for the American film industry which is based in Hollywood , California . The term "Tollywood", for the Tollygunge -based cinema of West Bengal , predated "Bollywood". It was used in a 1932 American Cinematographer article by Wilford E. Deming, an American engineer who helped produce
5586-535: The country into the Republic of India and Pakistan , which precipitated the migration of filmmaking talent from film production centres like Lahore and Calcutta , which bore the brunt of the partition violence. This included actors, filmmakers and musicians from Bengal , Punjab (particularly the present-day Pakistani Punjab ), and the North-West Frontier Province (present-day Khyber Pakhtunkhwa ). These events further consolidated
5684-730: The country, each offering films in diverse languages and styles. In 2017, Indian cinema produced 1,986 feature films, of which the largest number, 364 have been in Hindi. In 2022, Hindi cinema represented 33% of box office revenue, followed by Telugu and Tamil representing representing 20% and 16% respectively. Hindi cinema is one of the largest centres for film production in the world. Hindi films sold an estimated 341 million tickets in India in 2019. Earlier Hindi films tended to use vernacular Hindustani , mutually intelligible by speakers of either Hindi or Urdu , while modern Hindi productions increasingly incorporate elements of Hinglish . The most popular commercial genre in Hindi cinema since
5782-542: The creation of a national movement against colonial rule in India, while simultaneously leveraging the popular political movement to increase their own visibility and popularity. Themes from the Independence Movement deeply influenced Bombay film directors, screen-play writers, and lyricists, who saw their films in the context of social reform and the problems of the common people. Before the Partition,
5880-624: The crowds and traffic. Sharmistha Gooptu, in her article published in The Times of India , reported: "[ Alam Ara ] is proving to a great attraction at the Majestic Cinema, and crowded houses have been the order of the day." It was also the first film to be screened at Imperial Cinema in Paharganj . The film clashed with Shirin Farhad , a J.J. Madan -directed musical film that was released around two months later. Exact figures for
5978-405: The decade were Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai (2000), Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham... (2001), Gadar: Ek Prem Katha (2001), Lagaan (2001), Koi... Mil Gaya (2003), Kal Ho Naa Ho (2003), Veer-Zaara (2004), Rang De Basanti (2006), Lage Raho Munna Bhai (2006), Dhoom 2 (2006), Krrish (2006), and Jab We Met (2007), among others, showing the rise of new movie stars. During
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#17327906402626076-678: The decade with films such as Zanjeer (1973) and Deewaar (1975). Salim-Javed reinterpreted the rural themes of Mehboob Khan 's Mother India (1957) and Dilip Kumar 's Gunga Jumna (1961) in a contemporary urban context, reflecting the socio-economic and socio-political climate of 1970s India and channeling mass discontent, disillusionment and the unprecedented growth of slums with anti-establishment themes and those involving urban poverty, corruption and crime. Their "angry young man", personified by Amitabh Bachchan , reinterpreted Dilip Kumar's performance in Gunga Jumna in
6174-409: The emergence of a genre known as Mumbai noir: urban films reflecting the city's social problems. This led to a resurgence of parallel cinema by the end of the decade. The films featured actors whose performances were often praised by critics. The 2000s saw increased Bollywood recognition worldwide due to growing (and prospering) NRI and South Asian diaspora communities overseas. The growth of
6272-513: The film "an enormous popular success". In 2012, the writer of Outlook observed that the film's commercial performance "dealt a body blow to the careers of the reining stars of [silent] cinema", including Vithal especially since he was not fluent in Hindustani language. Critics were generally positive of Alam Ara , praising the performance of the cast but some of whom criticising the sound recording; they have noted that it has "shared many of
6370-574: The film's last print was destroyed by a fire at the National Film Archive of India in 2003. Its founder, P. K. Nair , declined the reports, clarifying in 2011 that it has been lost before the archive itself was established in 1964. He added the fire only destroyed mostly the nitrate negatives of Prabhat Film Company , and confirmed that he had received several photographs of the film from Irani and his son Shapoorji. Nair estimated that 70 percent of pre-1950 Indian films are lost. In 2017,
6468-406: The film's success has influenced India, Sri Lanka, and Myanmar. In 2003, the scholar Shoma Chatterji hailed, "With the release of Alam Ara , Indian cinema prove two things—that films could now be made in a regional language that the local viewers could understand; and that songs and music [were] integral part[s] of the entire form and structure of the Indian film." The film is also considered as
6566-477: The film, he ended his ongoing contract with Saradhi Studios , at which he started his career, causing him legal issues as the studio believed he was in breach of contract . With help from his lawyer Muhammad Ali Jinnah , he won the case and moved to IFC to play the male lead of Alam Ara . Alam Ara , which was funded by the business tycoon Seth Badriprasad Dube, cost ₹ 40,000 (equivalent to ₹ 12 million or US$ 150,000 in 2023). Principal photography
6664-829: The films starring Aamir Khan, from Taare Zameen Par (2007) and 3 Idiots (2009) to Dangal (2016) and Secret Superstar (2018), have been credited with redefining and modernising the masala film with a distinct brand of socially conscious cinema. Most stars from the 2000s continued successful careers into the next decade, and the 2010s saw a new generation of popular actors in different films. Among new conventions, female-centred films such as The Dirty Picture (2011), Kahaani (2012), and Queen (2014), Pink (2016), Raazi (2018), Gangubai Kathiawadi (2022) started gaining wide financial success. Moti Gokulsing and Wimal Dissanayake identify six major influences which have shaped Indian popular cinema: Sharmistha Gooptu identifies Indo-Persian - Islamic culture as
6762-619: The first Indian sound picture. "Bollywood" was probably invented in Bombay-based film trade journals in the 1960s or 1970s, though the exact inventor varies by account. Film journalist Bevinda Collaco claims she coined the term for the title of her column in Screen magazine. Her column entitled "On the Bollywood Beat" covered studio news and celebrity gossip. Other sources state that lyricist, filmmaker and scholar Amit Khanna
6860-455: The first masala film and the first quintessentially "Bollywood" film. Salim-Javed wrote more successful masala films during the 1970s and 1980s. Masala films made Amitabh Bachchan the biggest star of the period. A landmark of the genre was Amar Akbar Anthony (1977), directed by Manmohan Desai and written by Kader Khan , and Desai continued successfully exploiting the genre. Both genres (masala and violent-crime films) are represented by
6958-414: The first two examples. Awaara presented the city as both nightmare and dream, and Pyaasa critiqued the unreality of urban life. Mehboob Khan 's Mother India (1957), a remake of his earlier Aurat (1940), was the first Indian film nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film ; it lost by a single vote. Mother India defined conventional Hindi cinema for decades. It spawned
7056-473: The important barrier of one crore (10 million) rupees, made on a budget of only two lakh (200,000) rupees. The film tackled contemporary issues, especially those arising from the Indian Independence movement, and went on to become "the longest running hit of Indian cinema", a title it held till the 1970s. Film personalities like Bimal Roy, Sahir Ludhianvi and Prithviraj Kapoor participated in
7154-419: The late 1960s and early 1970s, the industry was dominated by musical romance films with romantic-hero leads. By 1970, Hindi cinema was thematically stagnant and dominated by musical romance films . The arrival of screenwriting duo Salim–Javed ( Salim Khan and Javed Akhtar ) was a paradigm shift, revitalising the industry. They began the genre of gritty, violent, Bombay underworld crime films early in
7252-619: The latter's commercial success paved the way for Indian neorealism and the Indian New Wave (synonymous with parallel cinema). Internationally acclaimed Hindi filmmakers involved in the movement included Mani Kaul , Kumar Shahani , Ketan Mehta , Govind Nihalani , Shyam Benegal , and Vijaya Mehta . After the social-realist film Neecha Nagar received the Palme d'Or at the inaugural 1946 Cannes Film Festival , Hindi films were frequently in competition for Cannes' top prize during
7350-424: The most attention, though some of whom criticised the sound recording. In addition to the successes, the film was also widely considered a major breakthrough for the Indian film industry and Ardeshir Irani's career with its status as the country's first sound film. Although no print or gramophone record of the film is known to survive, making it a lost film , surviving artefacts include its stills and posters. In 2017,
7448-402: The music directors are, adding that he had only a pump organ and tabla player. Furthermore, he confessed that the lyrical composition was done by himself. Distributed by Sagar Movietone , Alam Ara premiered at Majestic Cinema, Bombay on 14 March 1931, and the screenings ran for eight weeks. Ramesh Roy, an office boy of IFC, brought the film's reel to the theatre. When Mayank Shekhar of
7546-410: The palace's senapati Adil. The king finds out about this, and Dilbahaar tells him it was Adil who seduced her first. Therefore, the king arrests him and evicts his pregnant wife, Mehar Nigar, from the palace; Nigar gives birth to Alam Ara and dies when a shikari tells her about her husband's affair. The shikari later adopts Ara. Dilbahaar is jealous of Navbahaar and knows about her agreement with
7644-533: The place one night, Ara sees the alive Qamar and falls for him. Everyone in the palace subsequently learns about Dilbahaar's foul play and finally retrieve the real necklace, with Adil being released. The film ends with Qamar and Ara living happily together. Other supporting roles were played by Jilloo , Sushila, Elizer , Jagdish Sethi , L. V. Prasad , and Yaqub. After watching Harry A. Pollard 's 1929 American romantic drama part-talkie Show Boat at Excelsior Theatre in Bombay (present-day Mumbai), Ardeshir Irani
7742-404: The rest of Indian cinema) it has become part of the "Indian story". In India, Bollywood is often associated with India's national identity. According to economist and Bollywood biographer Meghnad Desai , "Cinema actually has been the most vibrant medium for telling India its own story, the story of its struggle for independence, its constant struggle to achieve national integration and to emerge as
7840-424: The shooting started, they learned the basics of sound recording from American expert Wilford Deming. When Deming came to Mumbai to give them the sound machines, he charged ₹ 100 (equivalent to ₹ 30,000 or US$ 360 in 2023), which Irani considered a large number at the time. Irani could not fulfill his demand and later finished it by himself and Bharucha. They used Tanar, a single-system recording by which sound
7938-574: The success of Bruce Lee films (such as Enter the Dragon ) in India, Deewaar (1975) and other Bollywood films incorporated fight scenes inspired by 1970s martial arts films from Hong Kong cinema until the 1990s. Bollywood action scenes emulated Hong Kong rather than Hollywood, emphasising acrobatics and stunts and combining kung fu (as perceived by Indians) with Indian martial arts such as pehlwani . Perhaps Hindi cinema's greatest influence has been on India's national identity, where (with
8036-428: The time of its release and was acknowledged as the first song of Hindi cinema . Zubeida performed mostly the rest of the songs. The credit of the film, however, did not mention both the music director and lyricist. According to Ferozshah Mistri's son Kersi Mistri, all of the songs were composed by his father; in contrast, the film's booklets mentioned B. Irani as the composer. Ardeshir Irani said that he did not know who
8134-414: The turning points came with such films as Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak (1988), presenting a blend of youthfulness, family entertainment, emotional intelligence and strong melodies, all of which lured audiences back to the big screen. It brought back the template for Bollywood musical romance films which went on to define 1990s Hindi cinema. Known since the 1990s as "New Bollywood", contemporary Bollywood
8232-571: Was Sadiyaan (2010). Anurag Singh was a Chief Assistant with him for most of the films. Most of the lead characters in his films are named Karan and Kajal. This biographical article related to film in India is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Hindi films Hindi cinema , popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema , refers to the film industry based in Mumbai , engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood
8330-427: Was adapted from the Bombay-based dramatist Joseph David's Parsi play of the same name, while the screenplay was done by Irani. The dialogue was written in Hindustani, a mix of Hindi and Urdu . Zubeida was cast in the title role after Irani's frequent collaborator and first choice, Ruby Myers , was unable to join the cast due to her inability to speak the film's language. This left Myers disappointed and she took
8428-465: Was also released that year. By 1983, the Bombay film industry was generating an estimated annual revenue of ₹700 crore ( ₹ 7 billion, $ 693.14 million ), equivalent to $ 2.12 billion ( ₹12,667 crore , ₹ 111.33 billion) when adjusted for inflation. By 1986, India's annual film output had increased from 741 films produced annually to 833 films annually, making India the world's largest film producer. The most internationally acclaimed Hindi film of
8526-536: Was buffeted by the Great Depression , World War II , the Indian independence movement , and the violence of the Partition . Although most early Bombay films were unabashedly escapist , a number of filmmakers tackled tough social issues or used the struggle for Indian independence as a backdrop for their films. Irani made the first Hindi colour film, Kisan Kanya , in 1937. The following year, he made
8624-617: Was coined during the 1970s, when the conventions of commercial Hindi films were defined. Key to this was the masala film , which combines a number of genres ( action , comedy , romance , drama , melodrama , and musical ). The masala film was pioneered early in the decade by filmmaker Nasir Hussain , and the Salim-Javed screenwriting duo, pioneering the Bollywood- blockbuster format. Yaadon Ki Baarat (1973), directed by Hussain and written by Salim-Javed, has been identified as
8722-404: Was completed by Adi M. Irani at Jyoti Studios in Bombay within four months, using equipment that was bought from Bell & Howell . When being interviewed by Bhagwan Das Garga , Ardeshir Irani confessed that he kept the project a secret during its production. H. M. Reddy , Bharucha, Gidwani, and Pessi Kerani were the assistant directors. As the studio was located near a railway track, the film
8820-433: Was inspired by two 1970s Bollywood songs : "Ye Mera Dil Yaar Ka Diwana" from Don (1978) and "Ae Nujawan Hai Sub" from Apradh (1972). Both songs were composed by Kalyanji Anandji , sung by Asha Bhosle , and featured the dancer Helen . The Kronos Quartet re-recorded several R. D. Burman compositions sung by Asha Bhosle for their 2005 album, You've Stolen My Heart: Songs from R.D. Burman's Bollywood , which
8918-402: Was inspired to make Alam Ara after watching the 1929 American part-talkie Show Boat . The story was adapted from the Bombay -based dramatist Joseph David's play of the same name. Made on a budget of ₹ 40,000 (equivalent to ₹ 12 million or US$ 150,000 in 2023), principal photography was handled by Adi M. Irani within four months in Bombay. Because the studio was located near
9016-430: Was inspired to make his next project a sound film which he would direct and produce. Although having no experience creating this type of film, he determined to make it and decided to not follow any precedential sound films. The project was subsequently titled Alam Ara and produced by Irani for Imperial Film Company (IFC), an entertainment studio he co-founded with the tent showman Abdulally Esoofally in 1926. The story
9114-464: Was its creator. It is unknown if it was derived from "Hollywood" through "Tollywood", or was inspired directly by "Hollywood". The term has been criticised by some film journalists and critics, who believe it implies that the industry is a poor cousin of Hollywood. In 1897, a film presentation by Professor Stevenson featured a stage show at Calcutta 's Star Theatre. With Stevenson's encouragement and camera, Hiralal Sen , an Indian photographer, made
9212-603: Was nominated for Best Contemporary World Music Album at the 2006 Grammy Awards. Filmi music composed by A. R. Rahman (who received two Academy Awards for the Slumdog Millionaire soundtrack ) has frequently been sampled by other musicians, including the Singaporean artist Kelly Poon , the French rap group La Caution and the American artist Ciara . Many Asian Underground artists, particularly those among
9310-465: Was produced in the Hindustani language, four years after Hollywood's first sound film, The Jazz Singer (1927). Alongside commercial masala films, a distinctive genre of art films known as parallel cinema has also existed, presenting realistic content and avoidance of musical numbers. In more recent years, the distinction between commercial masala and parallel cinema has been gradually blurring, with an increasing number of mainstream films adopting
9408-494: Was released, featuring the poster of its. The film has been remade at least four times: by Chitrapu Narayana Rao in Telugu in 1942 and 1967, and by Nanubhai Vakil in Hindi in 1956 and 1973. No print of Alam Ara is known to have survived, but several stills and posters are available. According to an article published by The Indian Express , several publications and the film's entry on Misplaced Pages had mistakenly stated that
9506-408: Was shot mostly during the nighttime—between 1:00 am and 4:00 am—to avoid noise from the active trains, which according to Ardeshir Irani would pass every several minutes. Microphones were placed at concealed locations around the actors. Irani and Rustom Bharucha, a lawyer and the manager of his other production company, Imperial Studios, worked as sound technicians for the film. Before
9604-482: Was taken by American films ... this transition also made for the rise of a host of new operators, who would become the industry’s vanguard in the first talkie era." The author of Indian Film Music (1991), Nasreen Munni Kabir , said she believed that it has made later films produced in the country more dependent on songs "in a way that has differentiated Indian cinema from most world cinema". Writing for The Rough Guide to World Music (1999), Mark Ellingham reported that
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