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Posters for Pakistani film Shanee/Shaani (1989) the first film to use special effects in Pakistan

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Rajnigandha (1974)

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masalafilmsrevival · 2 months

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Hello! I'm writing a final Essay about Indian parallel cinema or new Indian cinema and I kinda got lost, there are so many movies and themes to explore! since the deadline is pushing me, I don't have much time to explore it deeply, i've watched Charulata and Apu's trilogy but couldn't move forward from there. (all of them mind-blowingly amazing btw) Could you please please please give me some direction on which way should i keep looking/researching or any of your favorite themes that are recurring in 50's-70's Indian "new wave" films ? anything would be really helpful. Thank you in advance, hope you have an amazing day!!

oh my god, i did not see this until now as i typically only see notifications for this blog when i'm on desktop, i'm so sorry!! i really hope this isnt too late to respond. okay so i'm no expert but just some thoughts:

so obviously its a film movement that originated in bengal, a lot of parallel cinema is bengali indian OR bangladeshi, i'm not sure if theres a specific reason you're focusing on indian parallel cinema for your essay but thats something to keep into consideration especially because it spans past the 70s well into the 80s and somewhat 90s so after the independence of bangladesh. and that does impact and put context to the narrative of many films

the themes that are recurring tend to be class consciousness and disillusionment, religious and racial discrimination, casteism, more frank portrayals of the topic of sex, marxist thought, the burden of patriarchal society and expectation, to some extent borderline nihilism in my opinion, essentially the polar opposite of bollywoods pristine glamorized and polished portrayal of life and society that borders on science fiction from how removed from reality it is. in spite of it often.

if you want an outline of some filmmakers, actors, and films that can give you a decent idea of the movement, off the top of my head:

films i can think of that will give you a decent understanding of the tone and themes of the movement at least:

mirch masala

a river called titas and cloud capped star

donkey in a brahmin village

the apu trilogy and charulata as you said as well as devi and shatranj ke khilari. (the coward is also one of my personal favorites but not a necessary watch)

mammo, mandi, and bhumika

dont cry for salim the lame, the strange fate of arvind desai

arth

rat trap

maya darpan

duvidha, nazar, uski roti

quintessential filmmakers to at least get a decently rounded understanding (in my opinion):

saeed akhtar mirza

mani kaul

satyajit ray

ritwik ghatak

shyam benegal

mrinal sen

actors whose work or work during the period of early parallel cinema to look to:

smita patil (!) (probably the most important to look into if youre interested in this movement)

shabana azmi (early work)

madhabi mukherjee

soumitra chatterjee

naseeruddin shah (early work)

om puri (early work)

all of this is really just what came to mind immediately, i had planned on writing up a comprehensive summary of parallel cinema and what i considered essential viewing and themes and i will do that eventually, but i wanted to answer this as quickly as possible so i could easily be leaving out an insane amount of things. also i primarily used the english translations for these films unless i couldnt remember them. if youre in the usa (and maybe outside of it as well im not sure) MANY of these works or works made by these directors are on youtube or archive.org. i hope this is of some help and eventually i will post more comprehensive detail + scans of books i have about this. hope this helps someone and you have a good day!

#asks #anonymous #parallel cinema #this ask was sent about 2 weeks ago im hoping ur deadline wasnt up b4 now :')

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masalafilmsrevival · 2 months

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