Bollywood cinema has always been an evolving subject. Given its polysemic structures of meaning, it has nevertheless been generally perceived in two ways: (1) as a medium of mass-entertainment and empty fantasies played out by flat storylines and character stereotypes; and (2) as an ideologically-charged figment of individualistic and nationalistic expression, which weaves within itself a variegated dimension of history, myth, auteurism, politics, and culture. This second kind of Bollywood has therefore become a signifier for this cinema’s ability to introspect and play out an eclectic imagination. My presentation extends these historical enquiries into Bollywood — which also mirrors in its title (‘a third kind of Bollywood’) — and discusses a recently-released biopic on Netflix, "Amar Singh Chamkila"(2024), in relation to the development of what could be addressed as an independent circuit of Bollywood structure or filmmaking practice. The film falls into this new category of Netflix-sponsored/distributed Indian films which deftly redefine the conventions of Bollywood, insinuating a distinct filmmaking practice which stands in stark opposition to the more traditional systemics of Bollywood filmmaking. I further argue that the emergence of this new bracket of experimental films is propelled by forces that exist both outside and within the film industry, before closing my presentation with a speculation about the future of these new cinematic conventions and how the distribution practices of these films on OTT platforms like Netflix and Amazon Prime inform the internationalization of Bollywood cinema and the processes of its restoration of its otherwise "notorious" or precarious reputation.

Authors:
Ashish Dwivedi, University of Southampton, United Kingdom

About the Presenter(s)
Ashish Dwivedi is a current doctoral candidate at the University of Southampton, specializing in Hindi cinema. His PhD dwells over the problems of authorship in the cinema of Guru Dutt (1925-64), an Indian filmmaker from the popular film canon.

See this presentation on the full schedule – Saturday Schedule

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