The Evolution of India's Bollywood Industry from the 1930s
By Shruthi Arun, Elana Anil, Raina Gol, and Lufei Wan
National History Challenge Year 10 2022: Harrisdale Senior High School
Economic/Technological
Causes
British Raj, the ruler of India was at its peak in India during the 1920s. Meaning there was a greater flow of money from industrial and agricultural industries. The occurrence of World War II resulted in high inflation which accounted for war expenditure.
The value of the Indian currency significantly decreased and there were economic imbalances due to currency exchange problems and the development of exchange control. Downfall in India’s cinema influenced by World War II caused an imbalance in entertainment. Indian cinema and Bollywood in particular, deemed that the global meltdown could drive more people to movies to escape ‘reality’ and to ‘feel good’, with famous Bollywood actors promoting and adverting companies and products not only encouraging fans to purchase them, but gaining profit for themselves and the companies.
This boost in production and income resulted in high-quality movies which slowly led to the development of coloured films. Despite the inflation in the economy, the economic slowdown, and the massive rise in the price of onions, Indians still go to cinema halls to entertain themselves.
- Legendary filmmaker Satyajit Ray revolutionized the production of films in India with his unique methods of recording panning, closeup and landscape shots.
Source: Scrool.in
- Increased efficiency in the production of movies nowadays as a result of the technology from Britain and the USA
Source: British Cinematographer
Consequences
Bollywood was estimated to be worth around $2.2 billion USD in 2012 capturing 350 million Indian middle-class spenders with rising disposable income and other South Asian overseas with a good passion for good cinema. In 2019, Indian cinema box office revenues were over US$2.5 billion , in the services sector which accounts for more than 40% of the Indian economy. When people do not have do not have TVs at home, they are much more likely to go out and watch movies. Bollywood accounted for 15% of India's overall earnings in 2009.
Bollywood movies have always highlighted landmarks like Taj Mahal, Golden Temple which has romanticized India and portray India as a wealthy, developed, and prosperous nation. This helped increase tourism in India which virtuously benefited the tourism industry of India, bringing over 10 million tourists to India every year.
In 2001 ticket sales, Indian cinema reportedly sold an estimated 3.6 billion tickets worldwide, compared to Hollywood's 2.6 billion tickets sold. It makes up India’s largest employment sector, with local professionals from technical, theatrical, and creative backgrounds, producing around 1,000 films in more than 20 languages annually, Bollywood may edge its way up to become India’s largest export. The growing reach and influences of Indian movies have virtuously benefited other foreign economies as well.