Canonizing Indian Parallel Cinema – Part 4: The High Point (1980 – 1989)

This fourth period between 1980 and 1989 is a remarkable one in terms of how Parallel Cinema was able to find its biggest audiences. This was a period that also witnessed the inevitable augmentation of Middle Cinema. It was typified by films like Kalyug (The Machine Age, 1981), a cross-over work that saw Benegal continue a series of fascinating collaborations with Shashi Kapoor, a major star of popular Hindi cinema who had in turn cultivated a dual career working with Merchant and Ivory. Two very significant women filmmakers also made a name for themselves including Sai Paranjpye (who was able to bring an understanding of framing and composition to her work that few filmmakers could match in the comedy genre) and Aparna Sen, a star of Bengali cinema, who had turned her hand to filmmaking and who is still working today. Cinematographer turned filmmaker Govind Nihalani would stake a claim as a key political voice, although aligned very much with the Middle Cinema of Benegal, with works like the austerely shot Aakrosh (Cry of the Wounded, 1980) and the fiercely political Ardh Satya (Half Truth, 1983) that dealt with police corruption. While stalwarts like Sen, Gopalakrishnan, Ray and Aravindan worked steadily, Ketan Mehta, Gautam Ghose, Kudan Shah and Jahnu Barua helped to reinvigorate Parallel Cinema with new approaches notably the innovative use of satire. Another feature of this period was the second cycle of Naxalite themed films (John Abraham’s masterfully political Amma Ariyan/Report to Mother released in 1986) that looked back at The Naxalite Movement from a critical distance, acknowledging the traumatic impact of this political moment on the psyche of a nation that preferred to censure the violent state repression of Naxalism.

In 1982 at the National Film Theatre in London, a season of films was programmed with the support of the NFDC to celebrate the achievements of Parallel Cinema, as was the case in America too. This was perhaps the first time a growing international awareness about Parallel Cinema materialised through film festivals and touring retrospectives. 1982 also saw the NFDC co-produce Richard Attenborough’s hagiography of Gandhi and which was one of their most profitable ventures. In his survey of the Parallel Cinema distribution-exhibition landscape Ravi Gupta (1993) notes that in the period between 1980 and 1990, the commercial success of Gandhi gave the NFDC to diversify and provide larger loans for more films. Although the NFDC also started to produce films and fund more filmmakers than ever before, the failure to establish an alternate distribution-exhibition network would lead to the decline of Parallel Cinema. For the state, it seemed to be that prestige was all that mattered, not the contexts of reception or accessibility.

The emergence of Doordarshan as a national broadcaster and with the first colour telecasts in 1982, the NFDC’s later foray into television opened a new space for Parallel Cinema and which filmmakers readily exploited. The breakthrough for Doordarshan was Satyajit Ray’s short TV film Sadgati (Deliverance, 1981) that dealt with the caste system, a major theme of the Parallel Cinema movement and a theme that had become increasingly popular and prescient with many of the Parallel Cinema filmmakers from the South, and which would remain so throughout this period. Ray cast both Smita Patil and Om Puri in the main leads for Sadgati, both icons of Parallel Cinema, acknowledging the growing importance and influence of new filmmakers like Shyam Benegal and the impact they were having on both casting and performance in Indian cinema. This is somewhat ironic considering how Ray had turned his back on the so-called avant-garde filmmakers of the foundational years. Moreover, was this the point at which Ray merged with the ideological sensibilities of Parallel Cinema, and if so, what was the potential significance of this moment to the fate of the movement? With Ray’s entry into Parallel Cinema there seemed to be a convergence or reconciliation between realism and art that dually signified closure in terms of the film movement and a new opening, television contesting Indian cinema’s hegemonic imaginings of the nation by broadening traditional perceptions of what constituted the public sphere.

Doordarshan’s venture into film production had already led to many directors of the Parallel Cinema movement signalling the end. In the 1986 issue of Panorama in an interview titled ‘TV Tidal: Fears for the New Wave Cinema’ director Kundan Shah claimed:

‘new wave or art cinema is heading for a dead-end. In this sense, that though the films are made because of the patronage of the NFDC, they do not reach audiences, except when they are shown on TV’ (1986: 11)

With the continuing success of Doordarshan helping to keep Parallel Cinema viable and visible by funding projects and co-producing with the NFDC, Shiv Sharma, writing in 1991, called for a ‘peaceful coexistence between’ (1991: 47) between cinema and television. By taking stock of the period between 1981 and 1990, Sharma opens a relatively unexplored site for Parallel Cinema slippages that saw many of the best directors finally addressing a mainstream audience. If so, could we posit the peak of Parallel Cinema did not take place in the traditional public sphere of the cinema hall but in the home, in the domestic sanctity of television? And what of the television output that emerged from the collaborations with Doordarshan which Sharma reasons came to be regarded as ‘a major producer of good cinema’, offering ‘a place in the sun for the serious filmmaker’. Nearly all the major figures of Parallel Cinema experimented with television in some form or another, Mirza and Shah’s popular TV series Nukkad (1986 – 87) being a major example. Perhaps deep down there was a desire to connect with the mass audience borne out of a relative frustration with the unending limitations of film and the uncertainty of Parallel Cinema.

A Film Canon: Parallel Cinema

The Fourth Phase: The High Point (1980 – 1989)

1. Aakrosh/Cry of the Wounded, dir. Govind Nihalani, 1980, Hindi
2. Akaler Sandhaney/In Search of Famine, dir. Mrinal Sen, 1980, Bengali
3. Albert Pinto Ko Gussa Kyon Aata Hai/What Makes Albert Pinto Angry, dir. Saeed Akhtar Mirza, 1980, Hindi
4. Bara/The Famine, dir. M.S. Sathya, 1980, Kannada/Hindi
5. Bhavni Bhavai/A Folk Tale, dir. Ketan Mehta, 1980, Gujarati/Hindi
6. Chakra/Vicious Circle, dir. Rabindra Dharmaraj, 1980, Hindi
7. Chann Pardesi, dir. Chitrarath Singh, 1980, Punjabi
8. Hum Paanch, dir. Bapu, 1980, Hindi
9. Kalyug/The Machine Age, dir. Shyam Benegal, 1980, Hindi
10. Kolangal/Caricatures, dir. K.G. George, 1980, Malayalam
11. Satah Se Uthata Admi/Arising from the Surface, dir. Mani Kaul, 1980, Hindi
12. Adharshilla/The Foundation Stone, dir. Ashok Ahuja, 1981, Hindi
13. Chaalchitra/The Kaleidoscope, dir. Mrinal Sen, 1981, Bengali
14. Chashme Budoor/Shield Against the Evil Eye, dir. Sai Paranjpye, 1981, Hindi
15. Dakhal/The Occupation, dir. Gautam Ghose, 1981, Bengali
16. Elippathyam/The Rat Trap, dir. Adoor Gopalakrishnan, 1981, Malayalam
17. Pokkuveyil/Twilight, dir. G. Aravindan, 1981, Malayalam
18. Sadgati/Deliverance, dir. Satyajit Ray, 1981, Hindi
19. Thanneer Thanneer/Water Water, dir. K. Balachander, 1981, Tamil
20. 36 Chowringhee Lane, dir. Aparna Sen, 1981, English
21. Umbartha/Dawn, dir. Jabbar Patel, 1981, Marathi/Hindi
22. Umrao Jaan, dir. Muzaffar Ali, 1981, Urdu
23. Aarohan/The Ascent, dir. Shyam Benegal, 1982, Hindi
24. Aparoopa, dir. Jahnu Barua, 1982, Assemese/Hindi
25. Chokh/The Eyes, dir. Utpalendu Chakraborty, 1982, Bengali
26. Dhrupad, dir. Mani Kaul, 1982, Hindi
27. Grihadjuddha/Crossroads, dir. Buddhadev Dasgupta, 1982, Bengali
28. Kharij/The Case is Closed, dir. Mrinal Sen, 1982, Bengali
29. Katha/The Tale, dir. Sai Paranjpye, 1982, Hindi
30. Adi Shankaracharya/The Philosopher, dir. G.V. Iyer, 1983, Sanskrit
31. Ardh Satya/The Half-truth, dir. Govind Nihalani, 1983, Hindi
32. Godam/Warehouse, dir. Dilip Chitre, 1983, Hindi
33. Holi/Festival of Fire, dir. Ketan Mehta, 1983, Hindi
34. Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron/Who Pays the Piper, dir. Kundan Shah, 1983, Hindi
35. Khandhar/The Runs, dir. Mrinal Sen, 1983, Bengali
36. Mandi/The Marketplace, dir. Shyam Benegal, 1983, Hindi
37. Maya Mriga/The Mirage, dir. Nirad N. Mahapatra, 1983, Oriya
38. Smritichitre/Memory Episodes, dir. Vijaya Mehta, 1983, Marathi
39. Andhi Gali/Blind Alley, dir. Buddhadev Dasgupta, 1984, Hindi
40. Damul/Bonded Until Death, dir. Prakash Jha, 1984, Hindi
41. Ghare Baire/Home and the World, dir. Satyajit Ray, 1984, Bengali
42. Mati Manas/Mind of Clay, dir. Mani Kaul, 1984, Hindi
43. Mohan Joshi Haazir Ho!/A Summons for Mohan Joshi, dir. Saeed Akhtar Mirza, 1984, Hindi
44. Mukha Mukham/Face to Face, dir. Adoor Gopalakrishnan, 1984, Malayalam
45. Party, dir. Govind Nihalani, 1984, Hindi
46. Paar/The Crossing, dir. Gautam Ghose, 1984, Hindi
47. Tarang/Wages and Profit, dir. Kumar Shahani, 1984, Hindi
48. Utsav/The Festival, dir. Girish Karnad, 1984, Hindi
49. Chidambaram, dir. G. Aravindan, 1985, Malayalam
50. Debshishu/The Child God, dir. Utpalendu Chakraborty, 1985, Hindi
51. Hamara Shaher/Bombay Our City, dir. Anand Patwardhan, 1985, Hindi/Tamil/English/Marathi
52. Mirch Masala/Spices, dir. Ketan Mehta, 1985, Hindi
53. New Delhi Times, dir. Ramesh Sharma, 1985, Hindi
54. Parama, dir. Aparna Sen, 1985, Bengali/Hindi
55. Amma Ariyan/Report to Mother, dir. John Abraham, 1986, Malayalam
56. Genesis, dir. Mrinal Sen, 1986, Hindi
57. Massey Sahib, dir. Pradip Krishen, 1986, Hindi
58. Oridatha/Somewhere, dir. G. Aravindan, 1986, Malayalam
59. Panchagni, dir. T. Hariharan, 1986, Malayalam
60. Papori, dir. Jahnu Barua, 1986, Assamese
61. Phera/Return, dir. Buddhadev Dasgupta, 1986, Bengali
62. Susman/The Essence, dir. Shyam Benegal, 1986, Hindi
63. Tabarana Kathe, dir. Tabara’s Tale, 1986, Kannada
64. Anantaram/Monologue, dir. Adoor Gopalakrishnan, 1987, Malayalam
65. Antarjali Jatra/The Voyage Beyond, dir. Gautam Ghose, 1987, Bengali/Hindi
66. Pestonjee, dir. Vijaya Mehta, 1987, Hindi
67. Tamas/Darkness, dir. Govind Nihalani, 1987, Hindi
68. Ek Din Achanak/Suddenly One Day, dir. Mrinal Sen, 1988, Hindi
69. Khayal Gatha/Khayal Saga, dir. Kumar Shahani, 1988, Hindi
70. Marattam/Masquerade, dir. G. Aravindan, 1988, Malayalam
71. Om Dar-B-Dar, dir. Kamal Swaroop, 1988, Hindi
72. Bagh Bahadur, dir. Buddhadev Dasgupta, 1989, Hindi
73. Banani/The Forest, dir. Jahnu Barua, 1989, Assamese
74. Ganashatru/An Enemy of the People, dir. Satyajit Ray, 1989, Bengali
75. Kaal Abhirati/Time Addiction, dir. Amitabh Chakraborty, 1989, Bengali
76. Ek Ghar, dir. Girish Kasaravalli, 1989, Hindi/Kannada
77. Marhi Da Deeva/The Lamp of the Top, dir. Surinder Singh, 1989, Punjabi/Hindi
78. Mathilukal/The Walls, dir. Adoor Gopalakrishnan, 1989, Malayalam
79. Nazar/The Gaze, dir. Mani Kaul, 1989, Hindi
80. Percy, dir. Pervez Mehrwanji, 1989, Gujarati
81. Salim Langde Pe Mat Ro/Don’t Cry for Salim the Lane, dir. Saeed Akhtar Mirza, 1989, Hindi
82. Sati, dir. Aparna Sen, 1989, Bengali
83. Siddheshwari, dir. Mani Kaul, 1989, Hindi
84. Una Mitterandi Yaad Pyari/In Memory of Friends, dir. Anand Patwardhan, 1989, Punjabi/Hindi/English

References:

Gupta, R. (1993) ‘National Film Development Corporation’ in Mohan, J (ed.), Indian Cinema 1993: Directorate of Film Festivals, New Delhi: Government of India

Sharma, S. (1991) Sharing the Future: Musings on the Big and Small Screens in Banerjee, S. (ed.), Indian Cinema 1991: Directorate of Film Festivals, New Delhi: Government of India