“Children of the Soil” to “Dark Wind”: Nature, Environment and Climate in Indian Films

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“Children of the Soil” to “Dark Wind”: Nature,

Environment and Climate in Indian Films

Pankaj Jain & Shikha Sharma

To cite this article: Pankaj Jain & Shikha Sharma (2023) “Children of the Soil” to “Dark Wind”:

Nature, Environment and Climate in Indian Films, Visual Anthropology, 36:1, 69-79, DOI:

10.1080/08949468.2022.2129258

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Published online: 04 Apr 2023.

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FILM REVIEW ESSAY

“Children of the Soil” to “Dark Wind”:

Nature, Environment and Climate in

Indian Films

India is widely known as the biggest producer of films, now globally known with

the portmanteau “Bollywood.” India also grabs the media attention for another

reason—climate change. In 2015, The New York Times published an op-ed with a

cartoon showing India as the proverbial “elephant” blocking the progress at the

Paris Climate Change Conference. With the staggering number of films India

produces and the steady increase in climate change-related disasters that India

faces, the critics embraced the film Kadvi Hawa (literally, Dark Wind or Bitter

Wind, 2017) as the “pioneering” film raising the critical issue of climate change.

However, the issues raised in the movie were amply dealt with in several other

Indian films in the last several decades. This article is a survey of Indian films that

have shown or dealt with nature, environment, or climate starting from the 1940s

till the present time.

FILMS OF THE ENVIRONMENT

At the end of 2021, as the whole world continued to reel under the two

COVID-19 and climate change crises, Amitav Ghosh, an Indian anthropologist-

turned-novelist, published his second nonfiction monograph, Nutmeg’s Curse

(2021), which touched on both of the crises. He elaborated on the role of capit-

alism and colonialism that had led to climate change, leading to various zoo-

notic pandemics, including COVID-19. Intrigued by this strong criticism, I read

his 2017 monograph The Great Derangement on the same subject. In it Ghosh

began by recalling that his ancestors had been ecological refugees from

Bangladesh. Recalling childhood memories of his encounters with natural phe-

nomena in that region, Ghosh noted, “[T]he landscape of Bengal forces itself

on the artists, writers, and filmmakers of the region” (2017, 11). Indeed, until

recently Indian art, literature, and films could hardly be imagined without

activity of the potent forces of environmental factors, including especially the

two monsoons. However, Ghosh was quick to note, “[C]limate change casts a

much smaller shadow within the landscape of literary fiction than it does even

in the public arena” (ibid. 13). He noted: “[T]elevision, film, and the visual arts

have found it much easier to address climate change than has literary fiction”

Visual Anthropology, 36: 69–79, 2023

# 2023 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

ISSN: 0894-9468 print/1545-5920 online

DOI: 10.1080/08949468.2022.2129258

(ibid. 86). Intrigued by this observation, I started testing his thesis in the con-

text of Indian films. This essay presents an analysis of films in several Indian

languages that were based on imaginary or actual environmental or climatic

issues or incidents.

These films touch on various environmental issues, includ-

ing natural disasters, rural issues, urban issues, and nature preservation, as

described below. These sections are only meant to categorize the films and are

not watertight. Planetary ecological issues overlap and are interdigitated.

Another essential feature of these Indian films, of course, is their poetic songs

and ever-popular music amplifying the ecological message. These films have

won numerous awards at home and abroad yet are rarely recognized for any

environmental impact.

NATURAL DISASTERS

The two most common natural disasters appearing in Indian films are floods

and earthquakes. Especially in the films made before the 1990s, human society

was rarely shown as too far removed from natural forces. The film plots were

suddenly turned upside down by abrupt floods or earthquakes. Such apocalyp-

tic events might either break up a family or bring a community together. The

latter was the case in the 1941 film directed by V. Shantaram, made in both

Hindi and Marathi, with the titles Padosi and Shejari (literally, “the neighbor”)

respectively. The plot was based on an industrialist trying to construct a dam

around a village and in the process seed hatred between local Hindus and

Muslims. In the climax, as the dam gets broken, both the protagonist groups

sacrifice their lives to save their village, bringing the entire community

together in the process: metaphorically all the sins having been washed away

by the deluge. Nastik (“Atheist,” 1954) similarly depicts the heroine battling a

monsoon flood as she tries to row her boat. The climactic scenes of Baiju bawra

(“Crazy Baiju,” 1952) and Milan (“Confluence, or Meeting,” 1967) show the

hero and heroine sinking in the stormy waters of their respective rivers. The

ultimate non-dualistic experience founded on the Hindu and Buddhist philo-

sophical traditions manifests in the protagonists merging with cosmic forces, as

exemplified by water in such films.

Another globally celebrated black-and-white film is Satyajit Ray’s Pather pan-

chali (“Song of the Little Road,” 1955). The fury of Bengal’s monsoon forces a

starving family to move away from their dilapidated home and a village rich in

flora and fauna. That village’s natural surrounding is shown in exquisite detail,

but people are forced to migrate to the city as the weather turns furious. In

Mohenjo Daro (2016), as the dam breaks after a massive flood, prebistoric people

from the Indus Valley Civilization migrate eastwards across the Gangetic plain

of northern India. These scenes in the film specifically highlighted the role of a

climatic effect that some researchers have speculated was one of the reasons for

the demise of this Copper Age civilization (Shendige 1990). Similarly, a flood

destroys a dam in Satyam Shivam Sundaram (1978), uniting the estranged hus-

band and wife as if some cosmic force is helping dualities merge

into non-dualities yet again. The monsoon flash flood shown in Kedarnath (2018)

70 Film Review Essay

is based on the historic flood that occurred in Uttarakhand in 2013. Here, the

Muslim male protagonist sacrifices his life to help rescue the family of the

Hindu female protagonist. As in dozens of other Indian films, the message of

Hindu-Muslim unity is driven home even in the face of climate disasters

pounding everywhere. Harmony with nature must also result in harmony

between the diverse communities.

Earthquakes also appear in some films; for instance, the plots of Waqt

(“Time or Destiny,” 1965) and Kai po che (“Cut the Kite,” 2013) both begin with

a backdrop of catastrophic destruction brought on by earthquakes. In the for-

mer film a family is broken apart, with each member estranged from the rest,

while the latter film was based on the devastating earthquake in Gujarat in

2001. Kalira atita (“Yesterday’s Past,” 2021) seems to be the only Indian film

that deals with the frequent cyclones in the eastern state of Odisha (formerly

called Orissa). The film authentically and almost autobiographically shows the

massive loss of land and lives with increasingly frequent cyclones on the east

coast along the Bay of Bengal. Similarly, Tum mile (“You Met,” 2009) alludes to

the infamous 2005 Mumbai flood that reunites the estranged lovers; and

Dasavathaaram ( “Ten Incarnations,” 2008) invokes the 2004 Indian ocean tsu-

nami that killed thousands.

Another milestone movie based on a disastrous flood is Mother India (1957).

According to Chatterjee (2020, 21) this pivotal scene was inspired by a real-life

flood in 1955 in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, as is the case with many

other films mentioned here. However, in this film the female protagonist stops

the exodus of people abandoning the village as she reminds them of their eter-

nal relationship with Mother Earth. As the villagers stay back and work hard,

their farmlands start yielding fruitfully once more.

All the films mentioned above emphatically show that Mother Nature

remains invincible, despite all scientific and technical progress in the form of

massive dams, bridges and other industrial revolution benefits. The message

from these films could not be more transparent: respect and revere the Mother

and be grateful for her blessings. Moreover the various disasters serve as a

decisive turning-point from where the plots emerge in the beginning.

Alternatively the climatic catastrophes help the films achieve an intense climax

that comes with ethical messages grounded in socioecological harmony.

FAMINE, FARMING, AND RURAL ISSUES

Over 80 percent of the Indian population still lived in villages at India’s

Independence in 1947, as was reflected in early Indian films featuring farming

and a rural life in vivid detail. Many films from the 1950s and 1960s were

about farmers living in villages. However, by 2020, the urban proportion of the

Indian population had exceeded 40 percent (Keshav and Komaraiah 2015).

That changing demographic is reflected in Indian cinema. After the 1990s

rarely if ever was a film such as Lagaan (2001) made that highlighted famine,

farming and other rural issues. This departure of Indians from villages into

urban areas was explored by Tumbe (2018) in particular. Ghosh also noted one

Film Review Essay 71

of the largest migrant groups of India came from his homeland of Bengal,

including present-day Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal; and he

even referred to his ancestors as “ecological refugees” (2017, 9).

People from the arid region of Rajasth an, Marwar, can also be labeled

ecological refugees. Owing to s evere droughts and famines, coupled with

their moneylending skills, the Marwaris have been on the m ove for centu-

ries, and today are to be found in every part of India in their roles as trad-

ers or financiers. Gurcharan Das (2000) devoted an entire chapter in

Merchants of Marwar to this, citing the noted British historian Col. James

Tod (1832), “nine-ten ths of India’s bankers and commercial men are natives

of Maroo des and these chiefly of the Jain faith.” By Maroo des,he

means Rajasthan.

Unlike Das, Timberg (2015, 40) refers to severe ecological challenges as being

the prime reason for the Marwari diaspora to every corner of India. Although

famines and droughts are most recurrent in Rajasthan, in Indian films

Rajasthan is mainly presented as an exotic tourist place with magnificent cas-

tles and exotic palaces. Genesis (1986)

and Trishagni (“The Sandstorm,” 1988)

seem to be two exceptional films where the desert is seen to be full of hard-

ships, the end of human civilization and the beginning of the next cycle of the

human eras. In Trishagni sandstorms appear both in the opening and the final

scenes, marking the arrival of the young protagonists at a Buddhist monastery,

their departure from that same monastery, and finally the burial of the monas-

tery itself under mountains of sand. Once again, a natural disaster transforms

the plot drastically (Sharma and Jain 2020).

Famines and droughts are also portrayed in other Indian regions such as

Bengal, as shown in Dharti ke lal (“Children of the soil,” 1946) and Ashani sanket

(“Distant Thunder,” 1973). Both films portray the horrors of the 1943 “man-

made” Bengal famine which killed millions owing to massive mismanagement

by the British administration. Drought also appears in Maharashtra in Paani

(“Water,” 2019) and in Gujarat, as shown in Jal (“Water,” 2014) and Lagaan

(“Land Tax,” 2001): characters in all three films mitigate water scarcity by find-

ing new water sources and keeping the community united against hardships

exacerbated by social mismanagement and injustice. A landmark film, The

Guide (1965), also features a severe drought in its climax. The male protagonist

fasts for several days, his self-sacrifice brings rain to their parched village, and

the final scene celebrates his spiritual liberation in a glowing halo. In Kaun kit-

ney paani mein (“How Deep in Water One is,” 2016), an upper-caste male is in

love with a lower-caste female from a different village. When both villages suf-

fer from drought, they mitigate water scarcity by dissolving social differences.

Peepli live (2010) is another satirical commentary on irresponsible media that

sensationalizes farmer-suicide in the face of harsh living conditions brought on

by climate change. The plot of an incomplete film, Paani, was written around

the future lack of water in 2040 CE.

Films such as Godaan (“Gift of a Cow, ” 1963) and Khandan (“Family,” 1965)

seem to have been inspired by Mother India

(1957), mentioned above, these

three films showing the plight and perseverance of farmers in the face of

72 Film Review Essay

socio-ecological hardships. Another landmark film is A River called Titas (1973)

which showed the lives of fisherfolk who are entirely dependent on the rivers

and the monsoon in Bengal. Bhoomi geetha (“Song of the Soil,” 1997) shows

how indigenous people deal with the pressures of modernity, similar to how

Bhils of Rajasthan behave (Jain 2011). Recently Kadvi hawa (2017) has combined

the issues of drought and famine with that of coastal villagers losing their live-

lihoods and lives. Thus Kadvi hawa carries forward a long film tradition of

highlighting famine and farming issues in various ways.

FOSSIL FUELS, POLLUTION, AND URBAN ISSUES

The rampant burning of fossil fuels is now recognzed globally as the most sig-

nificant reason for climate change. Euro-American countries built their econo-

mies by burning these fuels and igniting the industrial revolution. China and

India are both rapidly adopting the same models as they gallop forward to

alleviate poverty from their societies. Amitav Ghosh suggests that India should

instead adopt East Asian models of Japan and South Korea that are labor and

education intensive, and not as resource-intensive as Western ones are.

However, well before the rise of the “Asian tigers,” Naya daur (“New Era”

1957) called for balancing fossil fuel-based industrial growth with labor-inten-

sive growth, offering a call to find a way to balance carbon-dependent mechan-

ical power with human resources. Kaala patthar (“Black Stone,” 1979) was a

film based on the 1975 mining disaster in the state of Jharkhand, in which 375

miners were killed by flooding and explosion in a coal mine. Gangs of

Wasseypur (2012) showed the violent side of coal mining, one involving mafia

and gang wars. Greenhouse gas emissions are widely understood to be the sig-

nificant issue with fossil fuels. The three films just mentioned highlight other

problems associated with the coal mining industry–their impact on labor,

safety during mining, and criminality connected with the entire operation.

Similarly, Yugant (“The End of an Era,” 1995) tried to weave its plot around

the other fossil fuel, petroleum, and the Gulf War of 1991, both having linger-

ing aftermaths on the environment, while the film’s title was nostalgically

referring to the good old days now gone forever. Two other milestone movies

dealing with water pollution were Neecha nagar (“Lower Town,” 1946) and

Ram teri Ganga maili (“Rama, Your Polluted Ganges,” 1985). In addition to

highlighting the issue of water and river pollution, both also raise the perva-

sive issue of exploitation of lower classes by the wealthy and powerful. In

Ganashatru (“An Enemy of the People,” 1990), an honest doctor initially treated

as an enemy eventually gets noticed, as he continues to spread awareness

about the contaminated water spreading epidemics acrossa town. Irada

(“Intention,” 2017) is based on the public health crisis due to carcinogenic ele-

ments from a power plant mixing in groundwater. The other major urban pol-

lution issue is air pollution caused by industry. This issue is sensitively dealt

with in two films based on the notorious 1984 Bhopal poison-gas tragedy,

Bhopal Express (1999) and Bhopal: A Prayer for Rain (2014). We can thus conclude

Film Review Essay 73

that pollution and other urban socio-ecological issues have a long history of

portrayal in Indian films.

ANIMALS AND NATURE APPRECIATION AND PRESERVATION

In this section we explore how animals and other natural forces are portrayed

in the cinema. Mountains have long fascinated Indian filmmakers and the

audience, according to Lutgendorf (2005). A quick search showed how film

titles routinely refer to mountains, especially the Himalayas; thus: Himalay ki

godmein (“In the lap of the Himalayas,” 1965), Himalay putra (“Son of the

Himalayas,” 1997), and Prem parbat (“Mountain of Love,” 1973). A few other

film titles refer to rivers, especially the Ganges, including Gunga Jumna

(“Ganges and Yamuna,” 1961), Ganga ki lahren (“Waves of the Ganges,” 1964),

Ganga ki saugand (“Oath of the Ganges,” 1978), Jis desh men Ganga behti hai

(“The country where the Ganges flows,” 1960), and Ganga sagar (“The Ganges

and the Sea,” 1978). Other films to note include Nadiya ke paar (“Across the

River,” 1982), Sangam (“Confluence of the Rivers,” 1964), Jheel ke us paar

(“Across the Lake,” 1973), Saagar (“Sea,” 1985), Samundar (“Sea,” 1986). A few

film titles refer to the sky, including Door gagan ki chhaon men (“Far below the

Sky,

” 1964), Neela akash (“Blue Sky,” 1965), and Pighalta aasman (“Melting Sky,”

1985). Many films of course had fire in their title, e.g., Aag (“Fire,” 1948) and

Agni varsha (“The Fire and the Rain,” 2002). There are a few film titles referring

to greenery or forest, e.g., Vanaja (“Daughter of the Forest,” 2006), and Hariyali

aur rasta (“The Greenery and the Way,” 1962). Many other titles refer to the

sun, e.g., Suraj (1966), moon, e.g., Chaudvin ka chand (1960), moonlight, e.g.,

Chandni (1989), cloud Badal (2000), flower and stone, e.g., Phool aur patthar

(1966), lion, e.g., Zakhmi sher (1984), seasons or weather patterns, e.g., Basant

bahar (“Spring,” 1956), and Barsaat (“The rains,” 1949).

However, none of the films cited here might be considered to be documenta-

ries. and most films with words for natural elements in their titles may not

actually deal with subjects of nature or the environment at all. There are none-

theless some films that do present characters exploring nature and exploring

their own lives, including Kanchenjungha (1962), Aranyer din ratri (“Days and

Nights in the Forest,” 1970), and Abara aranye (“Again in the Forest,” 2003). All

three of these films have characters from urban areas taking a break for a few

days in natural surroundings, leading to insightful self-exploration. In films

such as Bhalo theko (“Take Care,

” 2003) and Sati (1989), trees and plants sup-

port the female protagonist even as her society abandons her. In Aisa yeh jahaan

(“Such is this World,” 2015), the main characters’ visit to a village makes them

realize the importance of nature. Kartavya (“Duty,” 1979), Devara kaadu

(“Sacred Grove,” 1993 ), and Urumattram (“Transformation,” 2003) are films

that call for urgent action to conserve trees and nature in general. In Ship of

Theseus (2012), a Jain monk’s activism is portrayed as he raises his voice

against animal testing for medicines, even as he falls ill and is left with no

choice but to take such medicines.

74 Film Review Essay

Some of the films did not shy away from showing mankind–nature conflicts.

In Sherni (2020), the female protagonist has to deals with a man-eating tiger. In

Jaanwar aur insaan (“Animal and Human,” 1972) and Mr. Natwarlal (1979), the

hero deals with a tiger in the respective village. Other films featuring similar

conflicts include Shikari (“Huntsman,” 1963), Kala parvat (“Black Mountain,”

1970), and Kaal (“Time,” 2005). Tigers aside, Wardat (“Accident,” 1981) shows a

locust attack that threatens farmers and their land, but the protagonist discov-

ers evil human forces lying behind the attack and defeats them. Similarly, in

Krrish 3 (2013), a mysterious virus wreaks havoc across Africa and Asia, but

the protagonist remains untouched by it and goes on to foil the malicious plan

of the villain behind this attack.

In many other films, however, animals are shown as the protagonists’ loyal

companions. A goat protects the female protagonist in Mera Rakshak (“My

Defender,” 1978). In Gaai aur Gori (“Cow and Gauri,” 1973), a cow plays that

role for the heroine. In Haathi mere saathi (“Elephants my Friends,” 1971), ele-

phants are the closest companions for the protagonists. In Teri meherbaniya

(“Your Favors,” 1985), a dog avenges the killing of the protagonists. In Main

aur mera haathi (“My Elephant and I,” 1981), a pet elephant joins the male

protagonist in punishing the villain. Balak aur janwar (

“Child and Animal,”

1975) has a similar plot, in which elephants raise a child in the forest and

then take revenge for the murder of his parents. In Doodh ka karz (“Debt of

Milk,” 1990) a snake helps the protagonists avenge the injustice they had suf-

fered years before. Maa (“Mother,” 1976) and Safed haathi (“White Elephant,”

1977) call for the co-existence of animals with humans instead of using ani-

mals for zoos, circuses, or other selfish motives.

Finally, there are several

films in which various animals assist the protagonists in carrying the narra-

tive forward. For instance, a dog in Chillar parti (“Children’s Party,” 2011), a

dog in Entertainment (2014), an eagle in Coolie (1983), a pigeon in Maine pyar

kiya (“I loved,” 1989), a dog and a monkey in Parivaar (“Family,” 1987), a

dog in Dil dhadakne do ( “Let the Heart Beat,” 2015), a dog in Hum aapke hain

kaun (“Who We are to You,” 1994), a horse in Sholay (“Ambers,” 1975), and

another dog and a horse in Khoon bhari maang (“Blood-filled Forehead,” 1988),

There is yet another set of films in which a character magically turns from a

non-human into a human being or vice versa for good or evil intentions. Jaani

dushman (“Mortal Enemy,” 1979) has a man-wolf villain, and Junoon

(“Obsession,” 1992) has a man-tiger villain. Several films in which serpents

morph into human beings and vice versa have been popular over several

decades. A few of the ones worth mentioning in this group are Nagin (“Female

Snake,” 1954), Nagin (1976),

Nagina (“Jewel,” 1986), and Nigahen

(“Sights,” 1989 ).

In conclusion, natural elements such as forests, mountains, and wild or

domesticated animals have a long tradition of featuring in film plots and titles

(as is the case in Hollywood too). Most of these plots have a favorable por-

trayal of ecological surroundings, often inspiring appreciation among

the audience.

Film Review Essay 75

CONCLUSION

Climate disasters are now a daily occurrence worldwide. In addition to scien-

tific reports, print and visual media can emphatically spread awareness among

both the public and policymakers. While literary novels and media have

played their roles to some extent (as with the many stories of Kipling), this

survey of Indian films suggests a close relationship of humans and nature in

various dimensions, portraying natural disasters when the climate turns

against humans, famine, and farming issues where humans try to mitigate

nature’s anger, pollution and urban issues where humans reap what they have

sown in their groundwater and air, and finally preservation and conservation

of all animals and natural surroundings. Films such as Kadvi hawa are stark

reminders to all who see them to change our lifestyles to prevent further

destruction of the world as we know it.

NOTES

1. Veteran film artists however would like to see more films dealing with

environmental issues; https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/bollywood/

bollywood-should-make-films-on-environmental-issues-amol-palekar/. (accessed Dec.

25, 2021).

2. http://mrinalsen.org/genesis.htm . (accessed Dec. 25, 2021).

3. https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/disasters-india-amitav-ghosh-climate-crisis-

1872191-2021-11-01. (accessed Dec. 28, 2021).

4. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-india-forests-idUSDEL25463820070102.

(accessed Dec. 26, 2021).

ORCID

Pankaj Jain http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3906-0855

Sharma Shikha

http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2129-2108

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University of Chicago Press.

Ghosh, Amitav. 2021. The Nutmeg’s Curse: Parables for a Planet in Crisis. Chicago, IL: University of

Chicago Press.

Jain, Pankaj. 2011. Dharma and Ecology of Hindu Communities: Sustenance and Sustainability. London,

UK: Routledge.

Keshav, Arun, and Jadi Bala Komaraiah. 2015. “Population Trends of Urban India.” International

Journal of Research in Economics and Social Sciences 5: 245–253.

Lutgendorf, Philip. 2005. “Sex in the Snow: The Himalayas as Erotic Topos in Popular Hindi

Cinema.” Himalaya 25 (1): 29–38.

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Sharma, Shikha, and Pankaj Jain. 2020. “Encountering Asceticism: A Hindu Nun in Jogan, Vis-

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a-Vis a Buddhist Monk in Trishagni.” Visual Anthropology 33 (5): 466–473. doi: 10.1080/08949468.

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Shendige, Malati J. 1990. “Floods and the Decline of the Indus Valley Civilization.” Annals of the

Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute 71 (1/4): 219–263.

Timberg, Thomas A. 2015. The Marwaris: From Jagat Seth to the Birlas. New Delhi, India: Portfolio.

Tod, James. 1832. Annals and Antiquities of Rajasthan or the Central and Western Rajpoot States of India,

Vol. 2. London, UK: Smith, Elder, & Co.

Tumbe, Chinmay. 2018. India Moving: A History of Migration. New York, NY: Viking Penguin.

FILMOGRAPHY (WITH DIRECTORS)

Aag (Raj Kapoor, 1948, in Hindi).

Abara aranye (Goutam Ghose, 2003, in Bengali).

Agni varsha (Arjun Sajnani, 2002, in Hindi).

Aisa yeh jahaan (Biswajeet Bora, 2015, in Hindi).

Aranyer din ratri (Satyajit Ray, 1970, in Bengali).

Ashani sanket (Satyajit Ray, 1973, in Bengali).

Badal (Raj Kanwar, 2000, in Hindi).

Baiju bawra (Vijay Bhatt, 1952, in Hindi).

BalakaAur janwar (Nanabhai Bhatt, 1975, in Hindi).

Barsaat (Raj Kapoor, 1949, in Hindi).

Basant bahar (Raja Nawathe, 1956, in Hindi).

Bhalo theko (Gautam Haldar, 2003, in Bengali).

Bhoomi geetha (Kesari Haravu, 1997, in Kannada).

Bhopal: A Prayer for Rain (Ravi Kumar, 2014, in English).

Bhopal Express (Mahesh Mathai, 1999, in Hindi).

Boond (Abhishek Pathak, 2009, in Hindi).

Chaudvin ka chand (M. Sadiq, 1960, in Hindi).

Chandni (Yash Chopra, 1989, in Hindi).

Chillar parti (Vikas Bahl and Nitesh Tiwari, 2011, in Hindi).

Coolie (Manmohan Desai, 1983, in Hindi).

Dasavathaaram (K. S. Ravikumar, 2008, in Tamil).

Devara kaadu (Pattabhi Rama Reddy, 1993, in Kannada).

Dharti ke lal (Khwaja Ahmad Abbas, 1946, in Hindi).

Dil dhadakne do (Zoya Akhtar, in Hindi, 2015).

Do boond pani (Khwaja Ahmad Abbas, 1971.

Doodh ka karz

(Ashok Gaikwad, 1990, in Hindi).

Door gagan ki chhaon men (Kishore Kumar, 1964, in Hindi).

Entertainment (Sajid-Farhad, 2014, in Hindi).

Gaai aur gori (M. A. Thirumugam, 1973, in Hindi).

Gabricha paus (Satish Manwar, 2009, in Marathi).

Ganashatru (Satyajit Ray, 1990, in Bengali).

Ganga ki lahren (Devi Sharma, 1964, in Hindi).

Ganga ki saugand (Sultan Ahmed, 1978, in Hindi).

Ganga sagar (Ashish Kumar, 1978, in Hindi).

Gangs of Wasseypur (Anurag Kashyap, 2012, in Hindi).

Genesis (Mrinal Sen, 1986, in Hindi).

Godaan (Trilok Jetley, 1963, in Hindi).

Godhuli (Girish Karnad and B.V. Karanth, 1977, in Hindi and Kannada).

The Guide (Vijay Anand, 1965, in Hindi and English).

Gunga Jumna (Nitin Bose, 1961, in Hindi).

Haathi mere saathi (M. A. Thirumugam, 1971, in Hindi).

Hariyali Aur Rasta (Vijay Bhatt, 1962, in Hindi).

Hellaro (Abhishek Shah, 2019, in Gujarati).

Film Review Essay 77

Himalay ki godmein (Vijay Bhatt, 1965, in Hindi).

Himalay putra (Pankaj Parashar, 1997, in Hindi).

Hum aapke hain kaun (Sooraj Barjatya, 1994, in Hindi).

Irada (Aparnaa Singh, 2017, in Hindi).

Jaani dushman (Rajkumar Kohli, 1979, in Hindi).

Jaanwar aur insaan (Tapi Chanakya, 1972, in Hindi).

Jal (Girish Malik, 2014, in Hindi).

Jheel ke us paar (Bhappi Sonie, 1973, in Hindi).

Jis desh men Ganga behti hai (Raj Kapoor, 1960, in Hindi).

Junoon (Mahesh Bhatt, 1992, in Hindi).

Kaala patthar (Yash Chopra, 1979, in Hindi).

Kadvi hawa (Nila Madhab Panda, 2017, in Hindi).

Kai po che (Abhishek Kapoor, 2013, in Hindi).

Kala parvat (M.S. Sathyu and Alexander Zagurdi, 1970, in Hindi).

Kalira atita (Nila Madhav Panda, 2021, in Odiya).

Kanchenjungha (Satyajit Ray, 1962, in Bengali).

Kartavya (Mohan Sehgal, 1979, in Hindi).

Kaun kitne paani mein (Nila Madhab Panda, 2016, in Hindi).

Kedarnath (Abhishek Kapoor, 2018, in Hindi).

Khandan (A. Bhimsingh, 1965, in Hindi).

Khoon bhari maang (Rakesh Roshan, 1988, in Hindi).

Krrish 3 (Rakesh Roshan, 2013, in Hindi).

Lagaan (Ashutosh Gowariker, 2001, in Hindi).

Maa (M. A. Thirumugam, 1976, in Hindi).

Main aur mera haathi (R. Thyagarajan, 1981, in Hindi).

Maine pyar kiya

(Sooraj Barjatya, 1989, in Hindi).

Mera rakshak (R. Thyagarajan, 1978, in Hindi).

Milan (Adurthi Subba Rao, 1967, in Hindi).

Mohenjo Daro (Ashutosh Gowariker, 2016, in Hindi).

Mother India (Mehboob Khan, 1957, in Hindi).

Mr. Natwarlal (Rakesh Kumar, 1979, in Hindi).

Nadiya ke paar (Govind Moonis, 1982 , in Hindi).

Nagin (Nandlal Jaswantlal, 1954, in Hindi).

Nagin (Rajkumar Kohli, 1976, in Hindi).

Nagina (Harmesh Malhotra, 1986, in Hindi).

Nastik (I. S. Johar, 1954, in Hindi).

Naya daur (B. R. Chopra, 1957, in Hindi).

Neecha nagar (Chetan Anand, 1946, in Hindi).

Neela akash (Rajendra Bhatia, 1965, in Hindi).

Nigahen (Harmesh Malhotra, 1989, in Hindi).

The Outbreak (Wolfgang Petersen, 1995, in English).

Paani (Jadumoni Dutta, 2014, in Assamese).

Paani (Adinath Kothare, 2019, in Marathi).

Paani (Shekhar Kapoor, incomplete, in Hindi).

Pandhar (Gajendra Ahire, 2004, in Marathi).

Pather panchali (Satyajit Ray, 1955, in Bengali).

Peepli live (Anusha Rizvi, 2010, in Hindi).

Phool aur patthar (O.P. Ralhan, 1966, in Hindi).

Pighalta aasman (Shammi, 1985, in Hindi).

Prem parbat (Ved Rahi, 1973, in Hindi).

Ram teri Ganga maili (Raj Kapoor,

1985, in Hindi).

A River called Titas (Ritwik Ghatak, 1973, in Bengali).

Saagar (Ramesh Sippy, 1985, in Hindi).

Safed haathi (Tapan Sinha, 1977, in Hindi).

Samundar (Rahul Rawail, 1986, in Hindi).

Sangam (Raj Kapoor, 1964, in Hindi).

78 Film Review Essay

Sati (Aparna Sen, 1989, in Bengali).

Satyam Shivam sundaram (Raj Kapoor, 1978, in Hindi).

Shejari / Padosi (V. Shantaram, 1941, in Marathi and in Hindi).

Sherni (Amit V. Masurkar, 2020, in Hindi).

Ship of Theseus (Anand Gandhi, 2012, in Hindi).

Sholay (Ramesh Sippy, 1975, in Hindi).

Suraj (T. Prakash Rao, 1966, in Hindi).

Teri meherbaniya (Vijay Reddy, 1985, in Hindi).

Trishagni (Nabendu Ghosh, 1988, in Hindi).

Tum mile (Kunal Deshmukh, 2009, in Hindi).

Upkar (Manoj Kumar, 1967, in Hindi).

Urumattram (B. Sivakumar, 2003, in Tamil).

Vanaja (Rajnesh Domalpalli, 2006, in Telugu).

Waqt (Yash Chopra, 1965, in Hindi).

Wardat (Ravikant Nagaich, 1981, in Hindi).

Yugant (Aparna Sen, 1995, in Bengali).

Zakhmi Sher (Dasari Naryana Rao, 1984, in Hindi).

Pankaj Jain

Philosophy & Religious Studies

FLAME University

Pune, India

[email protected]

Shikha Sharma

Mumbai University

Faculty of Philosophy

FLAME University

Pune, India

Film Review Essay 79