Mumbai, the City of Dreams,
houses the prime centre of
Hindi Film Industry, better
known as Bollywood.
Acclaimed as one of the
biggest film industries of
the world, Bollywood
produces over 1000 films
every year. Since 1913,
Indian Cinema has made a
long journey from simple
silent movies to sound
films, then colored films to
technically advanced movies
of the present day.
Bollywood imbibed its name
from the merger of the term
Bombay (now Mumbai) and
Hollywood, the American Film
Industry.
Another point
worth-mentioning is that
Bollywood is just the part
of Indian Film Industry,
which also encompasses other
language film industries.
The movies churned out here
are the major source of
entertainment, with an
audience of 3.6 billion
people, which is more than
half of the world's
population. Bypassing the
reality, Hindi films are
usually 'masala' (spicy)
movies that comprise all the
ingredients like music,
dance, violence and
melodrama of a good
entertainer. The languages
of Hindi, Urdu and English
are extremely common in
Bollywood.
Potpourri of Various
Elements of Life
Infact, numerous English
films have also been
produced by the directors of
India. Not only English,
sometimes, one can find
amalgamation of a number of
Indian languages in a single
film, whether in its
dialogues, subtitles or
soundtracks. The films of
Bollywood are typically
musicals that have some or
the other catchy music woven
into the script. Good music,
in the form of songs and
dance numbers, is the main
attribute of a successful
film.
The plot of movies is, more
often than not,
melodramatic. It usually has
features like unlucky lovers
and angry parents, love
triangles, family
attachments, sacrifice,
crooked politicians,
kidnappers, devious
villains, courtesans with
golden-hearts, long-lost
relatives, theatrical
reversals of destiny,
siblings estranged by fate
and opportune coincidences.
Though the pattern is
changing, films with
hilarious stunts,
technically advanced films,
and art films are being
produced.
Evolution The first
silent feature film of India
was Raja Harishchandra
(1913), which was made by
Dadasaheb Phalke. It was by
the 1930's that the industry
started producing more than
200 films every year. Alam
Ara (1931) was the first
Indian sound film, produced
by Ardeshir Irani. With the
bang of the Great
Depression, World War II,
the Indian Independence
Movement and the Partition
Violence, Bollywood suffered
and then emerged with plots
of social issues and
independence struggle.
By the late 1950s, the first
color films of the Bollywood
were released. During this
period, the films were
defined by sumptuous
romantic musicals and
melodramas. The period of
late 1960s and early 1970s
gave rise to romantic
movies, action films and
violent films. In the mid
1990's, the box-office was
stroked by family-centric
romantic musicals once
again. The quality,
cinematography, innovative
story lines and technical
quality advances of the
filmmaking have taken Indian
cinema to great heights.
21st century Bollywood
The 21st century brought
immense popularity to the
Bollywood, so much so that
its films appeal the
audience of all segments.
Owing to aperture of the
abroad market, more movies
are released abroad and in
cine-multiplexes that cause
wider box office successes
in India and overseas.
Interesting Facts about
Bollywood
