SILENCE IS GOLDEN:My Tribute to Indian Cinema's Forgotten Silent Film Era!

Almost a century ago on 3 May,1913 crowds from all walks of life were thronging outside Mumbai’s Coronation Theatre waiting to witness a strange phenomena of a 3700 feet long reel. Who would imagine then that this 40 minute extravaganza playing out in those hallowed halls,would gradually build up over a 100 years to be the one of the country’s biggest obsessions and give the world one of its largest entertainment industries.The phenomenon then that was witnessed by Coronation Theatre’s audience was-the birth of Indian Cinema.

It wasn’t the first time that Indian audiences encountered “moving pictures”.Following the screening of the Lumière moving pictures in London (1895) cinema became a sensation across Europe and by July 1896 the Lumière films had been in show in Bombay (now Mumbai),India’s first short films were directed by Hiralal Sen, starting with The Flower of Persia (1898).Controversially the first Indian movie released in India was Shree pundalik a silent film in Marathi by Dadasaheb Torne on 18 May 1912 at 'Coronation Cinematograph', Mumbai.The first full length,indigenous,Indian film however came into existence in Dadasaheb Phalke’s “Raja Harishchandra”released in Mumbai’s Olympia Theatre on 21st April,1913 which marked the beginning of Indian Cinema.In pre-Independence India and in the wake of the two upcoming World Wars Indians all over the country feigned for some form of escapism,some form of liberty,some form of a pleasure which would relieve their tensions and put a smile across their faces when they most needed it.This much needed joy was provided for by a new form of visual entertainment almost unbeknownst to them-“Cinema”.Prior to Harishchandra they had Hollywood films filling up those gaps,but these were far and few in between.Also a young country under the pressures of British Rule,yearned for a form of entertainment they could call their own.Thus a hollow gap remained unfilled,until Phalke’s “Raja Harischandra”gave Indian Cinema a film so powerful and memorable in it’s content,that it had the privilege of calling it the country’s first film.

Following “Raja Harishchandra”more than 27 silent Indian films were released in India which dramatically rose to a staggering 207 by 1931. The period of silent films in India extended roughly from 1913 to 1931,when Alam Ara-India’s first talking picture was introduced.Cinema as a medium gained popularity across India's population and its many economic sections since tickets were made affordable to the common man at a low price(4 annas)and audiences thronged to cinema halls as this affordable medium of entertainment.The content of Indian commercial cinema was increasingly tailored to appeal to these masses with young Indian producers incorporating elements of India's social life and culture into cinema & others brought with them ideas from across the world.Sadly unlike Hollywood and most other film industries of the world,there is very little that we know about our country’s silent films,instead preferring to fast forward to the 50s without any concern for the 50 other odd years of glorious filmmaking.Hollywood still preserves and celebrates its silent films ranging from The Birth Of A Nation,Ben Hur to Chaplin classics like Gold Rush,Modern Times,The Kid and its silent film stars including Buster Keaton,Lillian Gish,Douglas Fairbank,Mary Pickford and of course the great Charlie Chaplin are still considered to be one of Cinema’s most influential and greatest artists.Indian cinema however has very few traces of its silent films,all but a few of its earliest film reels still intact,and its early stars all but forgotten.There’s a general lack of concern of the culture of perseverance and preservation among Indians,however the least we can do is to remember the glorious art of silent filmmaking,the wonderful,muted but naturalistic art of silent film actors,the excessive yet understated joys that Cinema in its best gave its future generations to relish.As Indian Cinema turns 100,let us celebrate its glory by discussing its prominent silent films and stars.

SHREE PUNDALIK(1912):
In 1912, Torne thought of making a mythological film, taking inspiration from similar genre of films made in Hollywood. He contacted his friend in Hollywood Charles Glouner to find how a film was made.He bought a Williamson camera from Kolkata-based Bourne and Shepherd Company for Rs 1,000. However, nobody knew how to operate it. So the company sent one Johnson to and provided the raw film stock.The play was shot in Mumbai at Lamington, Tribhuvan and Vitthalbhai Patel roads. The story was conveyed through gestures and subtitles.Dadasaheb on having exhausted his money approached Bourne and Shepherd company which agreed to process the film in exchange for the Williamson camera. The film was shipped to London where a negative and positive were developed and the positive was sent back to Dadasaheb for screening.Torne's Pundalik was about 1,500 feet or about 22 minutes long and ran in Coronation Cinematograph and The Times of India hailed the novel experiment and printed a review of the film in its issue dated May 25, 1912.However since the film was a photographic recording of a popular Marathi play, and because the cameraman—a man named Johnson—was a British national and the film was processed in London,Pundalik missed out on the honour of being called-“the first Indian film”.

RAJA HAISCHCHANDRA(1913):
Though Pundalik was theoretically the first film on Indian celluloid,the first full length truly indigenous Indian film was Dadasaheb Phalke’s 1913 production “Raja Harishchandra”. The film was based on the legend of King Harishchandra, recounted in the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. The film had an all-male cast as no woman was available for playing female leads.Phalke struggled to get woman, including nautch girls, to agree to act in film. He hence had to cast a delicate-looking man to play the role of Queen Taramati, Harishchandra's wife. Phalke discovered Salunke, who used to work in a restaurant as a cook, for this role. Salunke would later play the role of both Rama and Sita in Phalke's 1917 film Lanka Dahan and become the most popular actor and actress of his time.Dadasaheb's wife cooked food alone, without any help, for the whole cast and crew, which were more than 500 people. She also washed the clothes and costumes, helped in the posters and production of the film, and co-operated with the cast, satisfying them with food and water.The film reel was 3700 feet long and roughly 40 minutes. The film premiered on 21 April 1913 at the Olympia Theatre, Grant Road for a selective audience that included famous personalities of Mumbai and editors of many newspapers.It was first shown in public on 3 May 1913 at Mumbai's Coronation Cinema, Girgaon, where crowds thronged the roads outside the hall, as it marked the beginning of the Indian film industry. The film was so successful that Dada Saheb had to make more prints to show the film in rural areas as well. The film was a grand success and soon established Phalke as a producer and paved the way for the Indian film industry. Sadly, this historic film is considered to be lost, and the National Film Archive of India is known to have two of the four reels of this movie.In 2008, Harishchandrachi Factory, a film based on the making of Raja Harishchandra was announced. The title is based on the fact that, when the film was made, working in films was taboo, so Dada Saheb advised his artists to tell others that they were working in the factory of one 'Harishchandra'.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6FuYf7r46Y

LANKA DAHAN(1917):
The directors then were highly influenced from exotic Indian culture and the mystique secrets and invaluable emotions of the Indian mythologies-Ramayana and Mahabharata. A retelling of the 'Ramayana' story of Rama's wife Sita being abducted by Ravana, the demon king of Lanka, and Rama's triumph with the aid of men, monkeys and bears. From the trees Hanuman the brave monkey observes Sita held captive in the tulasi garden where Ravana comes to molest her. The main part of the film covers Hanuman's rage while in Lanka when he set the whole island afire with his burning tail. Dadasaheb Phalke went on to make several films after Raja Harishchandra including Mohini Bhasmasur (1913), Satyavan Savitri (1914) and Lanka Dahan (1917). But Lanka Dahan was the one that went on to become India’s first big box office hit! Anna Salunke, who had previously played the role of Rani Taramati in Phalke's Raja Harishchandra played two roles in this film.An interesting fact is that when the film was screened in Mumbai viewers used to take their shoes off when Rama, the Hindu god, appeared on screen

KEECHAKA VADHAM(1917):
Mythology was one of the favourite subjects of filmmakers during this time. The success of Madan and Phalke inspired makers from other regions to make films too. Keechaka Vadham, based on the Mahabharata, was the first feature to be made in the south. The film was critically acclaimed and successful upon release,however no print of it is known to exist presently, so it is considered a lost film.

SHAKUNTALA(1920):
The film, directed by Suchet Singh is based on Kalidas’ famous novel. It didn’t completely stick to the original work. Singh chose to go with a more liberal mind set owing to his foreign education. Patankar Friends and Company, a rival production house, came out with a more desi version, which had more mass appeal than Singh’s film. It got a big release but a cold response. But with time it became the most memorable film of Singh.

BHAKT VIDUR(1921):
By 1920, filmmaking had transformed into an industry. In the wake of the commercial possibilities, Kohinoor Studios released their film Bhakt Vidur, based on a chapter from Mahabharata. This movie clearly throws light on the rivalry fight between Pandavas and Kauravas.

BILAT FERAT(1921):
It was a 1921 Bengali silent film directed by N.C. Lahiri and Dhirendra Nath Ganguly who produced and acted in it.It was a silent love-story,which became a great hit. This film started a never-ending trail of love and romance stories in Indian movies. The Indian filmmakers incorporated in this film realistic love scenes, with kisses aplenty, as was the norm followed by their British and American counterparts. However, the Indian masses, while enjoying the British and American films, were certainly not comfortable with the forward Indian heroine and considered the stark depiction of passion as wayward.

PATI BHAKTI(1922):
This is the first movie of that time which was involved in the controversy of having item dance in the movie on the other hand showing obscene scenes which was not appropriate for people of that time. This movie is directed by J J Madan comes up with the theme of wives depicted by actress Patience Cooper who advocates that women should be devoted to their husbands. This theme greatly influenced the society and made Patience one of the leading actresses of the era.

PREM SANYAS(1925):
One of the more better known films of the silent era,Prem Sanyas was directed by Himanshu Rai and Franz Osten,& was the first Indo-European co-production.It was adapted from the book, The Light of Asia (1879) in verse, by Edwin Arnold, based on the life of Prince Gautama Buddha, who after enlightenment became the Buddha, or the "Enlightened one".German technicians and Indian actors came together and managed to steer clear of the usual exotic depiction of Indian culture which up until then was the western filmmakers favoured. The film was shot in Lahore(present day Pakistan).Himanshu Rai’s wife, Devika Rani played the lead actor and did the set decoration for this film. The film was restored by the 'European cultural channel Arte', and released in 2001.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pG-8mRK0QQ0

DEVDAS(1928):
From the 1935 Bengali version,to the 1955 Bimal Roy classic tearjerker starring Dilip Kumar,to the much publicized 2002 Shahrukh Khan,Aishwarya Rai & Madhuri Dixit starrer,and the rock version of the novel in Anurag Kashyap’s 2009 Dev D,Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay’s evergreen Bengali novella is Indian Cinema’s favourite book.The first film adaptation that started it all was Naresh Mitra’s 1928 silent film “Devdas”starring Phani Burma,Tarakbala and Niharbala.The film is acknowledged as one of the most faithful adaptations of the novella,and an accurate depiction of Bengali lifestyle with an excellent script without foregoing the elaborate grandeur of the immortal love story.

A THROW OF DICE(1929):
A Throw of Dice (Prapancha Pash) is a 1929 silent film by German-born director, Franz Osten, based on an episode from the Indian epic The Mahabharata. The movie is about two kings vying for the love of a hermit's daughter, the beautiful Sunita who decide to play a game of dice to determine who will marry Sunita. It contains thousands of cast members and animals including 10,000 extras, 1,000 horses and scores of elephants and tigers & was shot on location in Rajasthan.In 2006, the film was digitally restored and re-released at the Luminato Festival in 2008, with a new orchestral score by Nitin Sawhney who describes the film as "A cross between Chaplin, Cecil B. DeMille and an early Bollywood movie."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_91u-Z_h62Q
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3z2dT19bg4A

GOPAL KRISHNA(1929):
Though Netaji Palkar was the first movie made by V Shantaram, Gopal Krishna was the film that went on to become more popular. Based on the childhood of Lord Krishna, the film used excerpts from Hindu mythology to represent the conflict between India and the British.

There have been later tributes to the silent film era of India. In 1987 when the silent film era was considered to be long dead, Singeetham Srinivasa Rao directed “Pushpak”-a silent movie with dark humour. It narrates the story of an unemployed man who abducts a drunken millionaire and uses his wealth to impress a girl he loves. With an unexpected ending, this movie was well received by critics as it had many unconventional ideas and techniques.Even the recently released “Barfi”incorporated many elements of a silent film,with most of the film being enveloped in golden silence and employing many Chaplinsqe techniques.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nf8TIm9V1O4

Indian love affair with our cine matinee idols started from a century before.Unfortunately none of these silent film stars are remembered anymore,except Devika Rani,Ashok Kumar & Prithviraj Kumar,all of whom came much later.Notice how most of the prominent silent film stars were women in a time when they were supposed to be confined to their houses,while male stars only achieved a small percent of their popularity.Quite a contrast to a 100 years later when the male-dominated Bollywood is ruled by the Khans while the heroines are just pretty props,Some of the stars of the Indian silent screen were:

*SEETA DEVI:A tremendously successful superstar and enduring sex symbol of the silent era,Seeta Devi ruled the 20s with films like Prem Sanyas,Shiraz, and Prapancha Pash all three of which were made through the collaboration of German director Franz Osten and Himanshu Rai.Another crowning achievement was “A Throw Of Dice”.

*PATIENCE COOPER: An Indian and later Pakistani film actress,Cooper had a successful career in both silent and sound films.Cooper is credited with the first double roles of Indian cinema - as twin sisters in Patni Pratap and as mother and daughter in Kashmiri Sundari.She has a list of notable silent films including Pati Bhakt,her crowning achievement. Her distinctively Anglo-Indian features, like dark eyes, sharp features, ebony hair and light skin tone, allowed technicians to experiment with the imported technique of eye-level lighting and achieve the Hollywood look, an appearance similar to Hollywood stars of the silent era. Her appearance in a string of successful films has led her to being called the first ever female Indian film star.

*SALUNKE:Starring in Raja Harishchandra,Phalke discovered Salunke(a delicate looking man),who used to work in a restaurant as a cook, for this role. Salunke would later play the role of both Rama and Sita in Phalke's 1917 film Lanka Dahan and become the most popular actor and actress of his time.

*D. D. DABKE:Was an actor in the first ever Indian full length silent film Raja Harishchandra.He co-starred with P G Sane. He acted in three more movies and later became a cinematographer as well as a director. He directed the 1924 remake of Raja Harishchandra.

*SOHRAB MODI:An Indian Parsi stage and film actor, director and producer whose films include Khoon Ka Khoon,Sikandar, Pukar, Prithvi Vallabh, Jhansi ki Rani, Mirza Ghalib, and Nausherwan-e-dil.His films always carried a message of strong commitment to social and national issues. A whole generation's image of history is based on his historical films.

*PRITHVIRAJ KAPOOR:Considering the paucity of silent film conservation in India you’re forgiven for remembering Prithviraj Kapoor as Akbar in Mughal-E-Azaam,but not reminiscence of his debut in silent films. A pioneer of Indian theatre and of the Hindi film industry,Kapoor started his career as an actor, in the silent era of Hindi cinema,he starred in 1929’s Cinema Girl,and later as a supporting character in Alam Ara,& in lead roles in Vidyapati and Sikander before starring in 84 films till his death in 1972.As one of India’s pioneering actors,Prithviraj’s legacy of rich contribution to the Bollywood continues with his descendants from Raj,Shammi,Shashi and Rishi to Karisma,Kareena and Ranbir.

*RUBY MYERS:One of silent era’s biggest stars,in her heyday she was one of the highest paid actresses of her time.Drawing a salary of Rs 5000 per month,she was paid more than the Governor of Bombay had the sleekest of cars,a film named after her,and one of the biggest heroes of the silent era as her lover.Unfortunately she died in 1983 in her apartment,a lonely,forgotten starlet of an unsung era.

*SULTANA:Was one of the earliest film actress from India and acted both in silent movies and later in talkie movies. She was the daughter of Fatima Begum and reigned as one of Indian cinema's earliest superstars and among the few women who entered films at a time when it was not considered an appropriate profession for women.

*ZUBEIDA:Sister of Sultana,Zubeida established herself as big a star as her sister.Starting her career at the age of 12 with “Kohinoor”,she made infrequent appearances throughout the 20s with Sultana in popular films before becoming the lead actress of the landmark first Indian talkie film-Alam Ara.

The silent era of Indian Cinema was then brought to an end with the Ardeshir Irani 1931 release Alam Ara which was the first Indian talking film & H.M. Reddy’s 1931 produced and directed Bhakta Prahlada (Telugu),and Kalidas (Tamil).Like with the revolutionary change that “The Jazz Singer”brought about in Hollywood with the advent of sound in motion pictures,following the inception of 'talkies' in India some film stars were highly sought after and earned comfortable incomes through acting.As sound technology advanced the 1930s saw the rise of music in Indian cinema with musicals such as Indra Sabha and Devi Devyani marking the beginning of song-and-dance in India's films. According to P.K Nair, Director of Film Archives has traced a number of copies of Indian classic of the 1930s and 1940s in countries like Pakistan, Algeria and many more. And these are copies of films which can no longer be found in India. ''It's sad that we don't treat films as our cultural heritage. Almost 70 per cent of the films made before the 1950s will not be available any more, even for the love of money,'' he says.

There is much joy to be found in silent films.The joy de reverie,heartfelt emotions,speechless love letters,wordless rage conveyed through the naturalistic,subtle yet touching expressions of the stars was an immaculate art in itself.To embrace the sublime magic of that wordless emotion,to revel in the joy of silence,to soothe youself with the soft black and white images,is a reminder of why we love movies so much.At a time of OTT violence and sex,silent films are there to remind us of the simple pleasures of going to the movies,to embrace it’s sublime nature would be to have dollops of ice cream on a summer day.
As a pompous,self-destructing Norma Desmond sitting in her fancy Sunset Blvd. house exclaims:
“We didn't need dialogue. We had faces!”After all silent films aren’t really forgotten,the stars haven’t really become “small”.They are BIG,it’s the pictures that have become small.