Schirmer Encyclopedia of Film

India
such as Shabana Azmi (b. 1950), Smita Patil (1955–
1986), and Naseeruddin Shah (b. 1950) (all rising to
prominence in the films of Shyam Benegal [b. 1934]).
But the overwhelming significance of the Indian film
star became most apparent in the mid-1970s, when
Bachchan’s status as an ‘‘angry young man’’ demonstrated
the importance that a single charismatic actor
could have for an entire industry. Bachchan’s massive
popularity defined an era and a new kind of hero through
a series of blockbuster films. Following Bachchan’s decade-long
reign, younger male stars, including Shah Rukh
Khan (b. 1965), Aamir Khan (b. 1965), and Hritik
Roshan (b. 1974), often represent a globalized and commercial
youth culture, while recent female stars such as
Madhuri Dixit (b. 1967) and Aishwarya Rai (b. 1973)
continue to represent the tension between traditional
Indian values and feisty, often erotic, independence.
The popularity of film stars has also led to prominent
political careers, especially in Tamil Nadu, where
the Tamil film superstars Shivaji Ganesan (1927–2001),
Jayalalitha, and M. G. Ramachandran (1917–1987)
(known as MGR) balanced film and political careers for
decades, frequently blurring their on- and offscreen roles.
In Andhra Pradesh, the Telegu cinema superstar N. T.
Rama Rao (NTR; 1923–1996) enjoyed a similar career.
Some Hindi film stars, including Bachchan, have also
dabbled in politics, often controversially, but with less
long-term success than that of their South Indian
counterparts.
THE STATE AND CINEMA
Although some film stars succeeded in politics, popular
Hindi cinema has had an uneasy relationship with the
Indian state. The resistance to state-imposed Hindi in
education, public administration, radio, and television
starkly contrasts with the commercial Hindi cinema’s
pan-Indian popularity and national status. This is even
more significant in the case of Hindi film song lyrics,
which are embraced across both linguistic and class
boundaries, including the privileged, English-speaking
upper echelons, who otherwise typically disdain popular
cinema.
State-controlled radio’s bid to exclude Hindi film
music failed, but historically the state’s efforts to regulate
the industry through taxation and censorship, though
contentious, have been more successful. The Motion
Picture Association of India (IMPA), the official body
representing industry interests, has consistently but
unsuccessfully negotiated for lower taxes. A few lowbudget
artistic films and occasionally a popular feature
film deemed ‘‘educational’’ might receive exemption
from the stiff entertainment tax, but a certification by
the Censor Board is mandatory for all general theater
film releases and appears onscreen. The state assumes
moral regulatory authority, insisting on cutting what it
deems inappropriate representations of sexuality and violence
as well as overtly political content. Hindi cinema
has devised awkward strategies to circumvent censorship
related to sexuality, creating its own unusual conventions,
reminiscent of Hollywood films produced under the
Production Code. A ban on screen kissing initially
derived from the British censorship code was subsequently
accepted by the industry in a curious mode of
self-regulation that contrasts with the erotically charged
‘‘wet sari’’ scenes common in song sequences. Standing in
for the kiss or intimate love scenes, lyrics, gestures, and
body movements creatively suggest the erotics of romance
and desire. The Indian state’s role as an arbiter of morality
and taste is most clearly seen in the patronage it offered
cinema through the Film Finance Corporation (FFC), a
financial and distribution platform established in 1960
(reconstituted as the National Film Development
Corporation, an amalgamation of the FFC and the
Indian Motion Picture Export Corporation in 1980),
and the Film and Television Institute of India, a training
school set up in 1961. Together these contributed to the
emergence of art cinema in India suited almost exclusively
to the taste and sensibility of the Indian literati.
ART CINEMA
In the 1950s Satyajit Ray’s films placed regional Bengali
cinema (received as Indian cinema) on the international
map, and although other Bengali filmmakers, such as
Ritwik Ghatak and Mrinal Sen, shared some of the
national attention, Ray’s international status gave him
undisputed standing as the master of this cinema. The
three films of Ray’s Apu trilogy—Pather Panchali (Song
of the Little Road, 1955), Aparajito (The Unvanquished,
1957), and Apur Sansar (The World of Apu, 1959)—
derive their strength from Ray’s ability to create indelible
moments from a naturalistic, understated style and simple
narrative. Each film forces Apu to confront painful
losses, which are offset by moments of quiet joy. Critics
praised the films for their universal humanism, whereas
the former Bombay star Nargis, serving as a member of
Parliament, famously denounced Ray for ‘‘exporting
images of India’s poverty for foreign audiences.’’ In
1970 an official art cinema developed in India, helped
in no small part by state subsidies and promotion at
international film festivals. A handful of directors
emerged, filling the space occupied almost exclusively
by Ray in the two preceding decades. A pan-Indian and
growing middle class expanded Ray’s audience beyond
Bengal, and in 1977 he made Shatranj Ke Khiladi (The
Chess Players) for a national audience.
20 SCHIRMER ENCYCLOPEDIA OF FILM