| Bombay Before Bollywood: Film City Fantasies Contributor(s): Thomas, Rosie (Author) |
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ISBN: 1438456751 ISBN-13: 9781438456751 Publisher: State University of New York Press OUR PRICE: $90.25 Product Type: Hardcover - Other Formats Published: March 2015 |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - Performing Arts | Film - History & Criticism - History | Asia - India & South Asia |
| Dewey: 791.430 |
| LCCN: 2014046802 |
| Series: Suny Series, Horizons of Cinema |
| Physical Information: 0.98" H x 6.4" W x 8.56" (1.31 lbs) 346 pages |
| Themes: - Cultural Region - Indian - Cultural Region - Asian |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: Bombay before Bollywood offers a fresh, alternative look at the history of Indian cinema. Avoiding the conventional focus on India's social and mythological films, Rosie Thomas examines the subaltern genres of the "magic and fighting films"--the fantasy, costume, and stunt films popular in the decades before and immediately after independence. She explores the influence of this other cinema on the big-budget masala films of the 1970s and 1980s, before "Bollywood" erupted onto the world stage in the mid-1990s. Thomas focuses on key moments in this hidden history, including the 1924 fairy fantasy Gul-e-Bakavali; the 1933 talkie Lal-e-Yaman; the exploits of stunt queen Fearless Nadia; the magical neverlands of Hatimtai and Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp; and the 1960s stunt capers Zimbo and Khilari. She includes a detailed ethnographic account of the Bombay film industry of the early 1980s, centering on the beliefs and fantasies of filmmakers themselves with regard to filmmaking and film audiences, and on-the-ground operations of the industry. A welcome addition to the fields of film studies and cultural studies, the book will also appeal to general readers with an interest in Indian cinema. |