Encyclopedia of Indian Cinema (Paperback)

~ Ashish Rajadhyaksha (Editor), Paul Willemen (Editor)

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

The Indian motion-picture industry is one of the largest in the world; 23 million Indians go to the movies every day. Written by Rajadhyaksha (senior fellow, Centre for the Study of Culture and Society, Bangalore) and Willemen (critical studies, Napier Univ., Edinburgh), this is a one-stop reference book on Indian cinema. Encompassing films in the major Indian languages, this revised edition (originally published in 1994 and updated to 1995) contains entries on directors, stars, producers, writers, and composers and lists birth and death dates, background information, and filmography. A chronological listing of films from 1912 onwards--complete with cast, credits, and plot synopses--is also provided; and black-and-white photographs appear throughout. In addition, a time line chronicles major milestones in Indian cinema, and a chart displays film statistics on both sound and silent films. An extensive bibliography and a name and film index rounds the volume out. No collection on Indian film can afford to be without this book; highly recommended for academic and larger public libraries.
-Ravi Shenoy, Hinsdale P.L., IL
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Review

"It is hard to fault the overall conception, breadth and depth of the work." -- Times Higher Education Supplement

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Product Details

• Paperback: 652 pages
• Publisher: British Film Institute; Revised edition (January 22, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 085170669X
• ISBN-13: 978-0851706696
• Product Dimensions: 12.1 x 9.3 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #646,560 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a crucial resource, December 1, 1999

By A Customer

For both scholars and fans of Indian cinema, this revised and updated edition is a crucial resource: there's nothing else close to it for information on Indian film -- but it's also compulsively readable. I keep finding myself using it to check a fact, and then browsing through it as one entry leads to the next. I suspect the previous edition, only published in hardback, was out of the price range of many who would have appreciated it, but this very inexpensive paperback edition should allow the book to get into the hands of anyone who has an interest or passion for Indian cinema. The illustrations are great too!

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars World's Most Prolific Film Industry, May 13, 2000

By	Amy Laly (Seattle, Washington) - See all my reviews

Reviewed by Amy Dadichandji Laly, For Pacific Reader, An Asian Pacific North American Review of Books, Spring 2000

The Encyclopaedia of Indian Cinema by Ashish Rajadhyaksha and Paul Willemen is perhaps the most exhaustive compendium of reference material compiled as a resource guide for film students and movie buffs around the world. Published by Oxford University Press, this ambitious book is produced in association with the National Film Archive of India and the British Film Institute.

The scope of the new revised edition includes a capsule chronicle of Indian history and milestones in the Indian film industry; impressive filmographies of major directors, actors, music composers, lyricists and scenarists; plot synopses of films; film and name indices; and a thorough bibliography on the history of Indian cinema.

From 28 films produced in 1931 to 948 in 1990 and 793 in 1995, India boasts the world's largest national film industry with dream factories in Mumbai, Chennai, Calcutta, Bangalore, and Hyderabad, churning out Urdu-Hindi Bollywood musicals and important regional art films. Assamese, Bengali, Bhojpuri, Gujerati, Hindi, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Oriya, Punjabi, Rajasthani, Tamil and Telegu cinema is included in this paperback edition which covers a vast landscape from the birth of silent movies and talkies to mainstream productions and documentaries up to 1995.

Cinema is but another idiom of complex social, cultural, political, and historical influences especially in a country as diverse as India in its many regional languages, and ethnic and religious pluralism. The reader will find inspiring references to a number of art movements outside of the industry which informed filmmakers in their day. The entry on the Progressive Writers' Association, that brings into focus such stalwarts as Premchand, Ismat Chughtai, Ali Sardar Jafri, Krishan Chander, Rajinder Singh Bedi, Sadat Hasan Manto, among other luminaries, is especially invigorating. The Indian People's Theatre Association, Parsee Theatre, and political movements such as the Naxalite and Swadeshi, provide "elaborate cross-references to other, more directly, more cinematic entries."

The A to Z of this remarkable index of artistes starts with Khwaja Ahmad Abbas, a prodigious director and scenarist "mainly in the socialist-realist mode," to Zubeida, a real life princess, daughter of the Nawab of Sachin, who played the lead in "Alam Ara," India's first sound film released 14 March 1931. The Film index is chronological and starts with the release in 1912 of the 12 foot silent film "Pundalik" by P. R. Tipnis and N. G. Chitre, adapted from Ramrao Kirtikar's Marathi stage play about the Hindu saint. The last entry is a 158 minute megabudget Tamil musical, released in 1996 called "Kadhal Desum," written and directed by Kadir with Vineet, Abbas, and Tabu as lead players and music by A. R. Rehman. This is the only film entry for the year 1996.

The Encyclopaedia of Indian Cinema is really a loving tribute to the amazing men and women who made the film industry the most prolific in the world.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars time for a 3rd edition, June 22, 2006

By	W Boudville (Terra, Sol 3) - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

The book is perhaps the most comprehensive listing of Indian movies that exists. Even in its earlier first edition. An update was needed simply because of the prodigious output of Bollywood movies each year. The typical number is 700.

From thumbing through the text, you can see the great and diverse nature of Indian society. Even simply in the languages that the movies span. Many stars' names will be unfamiliar to a non-Indian reader. But the book gives the impression that here is a huge world of its own, to rival anything in Hollywood.

This book creates its own conclusion. The 2nd edition came out in 99. Seven years ago. High time for the author to furnish a 3rd edition to encompass the intervening years.