Beyond the glitz and glamour of Bollywood, India is a thriving country with brilliant colors, rich culture, and larger-than-life cinematic experiences. This is a lesser-known arena where the independent filmmaker—a passionate breed of storyteller—paves their path, bringing to life themes that challenge, inspire, and captivate.
Unlike their mainstream colleagues, independent filmmakers operate outside of large studios. Many of them wear many hats; they are directors, producers, and, at times, even scriptwriters and actors.
Their films encompass the following features:
Unique Voices: Originality is the major key to independent cinema. Independent filmmakers touch upon a wide range of themes, social challenges, and regional narratives that mainstream Bollywood normally ignores.
Shoe-String Budgets: Resourcefulness is an important trait. Independent films rely on novel finance methods such as crowdsourcing, personal savings, and smaller studios, demanding resourceful production solutions.
Alternative Distribution: Reaching audiences is a big struggle. Independent filmmakers make use of film festivals, online channels, and word-of-mouth publicity to promote their projects.
Read More: Filmmaking Techniques That Every Director Should Know
The journey of an independent filmmaker in India is full of hardships. The major challenge is funding. Raising finances is difficult, especially for first-time directors. The limited distribution network makes it difficult to cater to larger audiences. Moreover, regional language films often do not get a pan-Indian viewership.
Despite all the challenges, independent cinema in India is doing well and going strong. With the advent of film festivals, for example, Sundance India and the Mumbai Film Festival, a much-needed platform has been created for these works. Online streaming allows for more accessibility and allows viewers to discover these gems.
Read More: Best Directors in India : Films, Television and OTT
Known as the “father of independent documentary filmmaking” in India, Anand Patwardhan has been making socio-political documentaries for over five decades pursuing diverse and controversial issues that are at the crux of social and political life in India. Many of his films were at one time or another banned by state television channels in India and became the subject of litigation by Anand who successfully challenged the censorship rulings in court.
Films: “Bombay” (1989) and “Reason” (2008), which provide critical criticisms of social and political reality.
Satyajit Ray, an Indian filmmaker and among the dozen or so great masters of world cinema, is known for his humanistic approach to cinema. A true auteur, Ray directly controlled many aspects of filmmaking. While Ray was not completely independent, his impact on Indian cinema is unquestionable.
Films: Charulata (The Lonely Wife), Apu Trilogy, 1. Aranyer Din Ratri (Days and Nights in the Forest) among many more
Anurag Singh Kashyap (born 10 September 1972) is an Indian film director, producer and screenwriter. Kashyap made his directorial debut with as yet unreleased Paanch, with Kay Kay Menon as the lead. As a filmmaker, he is known for Black Friday (2004), a controversial and award-winning Hindi film about the 1993 Mumbai bombings, followed by No Smoking (2007), Dev D (2009), Gulaal (2009), That Girl in Yellow Boots (2011) and Gangs of Wasseypur (2012). As a screenwriter, he wrote the scripts for the Filmfare Award-winning Satya (1998) and the Academy Award-nominated Canadian film Water (2005). He founded his film production company, Anurag Kashyap Films Pvt. Ltd. in 2009.
Films: Gulaal, Paanch, No Smoking etc
Guneet Monga is a powerful producer who advocates indie cinema. Her production company, Sikhya Entertainment, has produced critically acclaimed films such as “Lunchbox” (2013) and “Masaan,” demonstrating her devotion to telling original stories.
Films: The Elephant Whisperers
Rima Das (born May 13, 1981) is an Indian filmmaker from the North Eastern state of Assam. Her films, Village Rockstars and Bulbul Can Sing premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival, and were screened at over 120 prestigious film festivals around the world winning over 70 Awards including the National Film Awards in India, Village Rockstars was also India’s Official Entry to the Academy Awards 2019.
She has donned multiple hats of writer, director, producer, cinematographer, editor for her projects.Be it an elderly man who discovers a new world (Man with the Binoculars), the little girl from an impoverished background who dream of having a guitar (Village Rockstars) or three teenagers exploring their identities and sexuality in the face of patriarchy (Bulbul Can Sing) or a family man struggling to keep his business and personal life together amidst the Covid-19 pandemic – Rima Das is known for making indigenous and realistic stories that explore complicated relationships, finding purpose, coming of age, and life amidst nature.
Films: Village Rockstars, Bulbul Can Sing, Tiara’s Husband
Ghatak, a Bengali cinema classic, created films such as “Meghe Dhaka Tara” (1960) that examined themes of partition and social displacement with poetic elegance.
Fims: Subarnarekha, Komal Gandhar and Meghe Dhaka Tara among many others.
Vikramaditya Motwane’s directorial debut Udaan (2010) was selected to compete in the ‘Un Certain Regard’ category at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival. He’s since directed Robber (2013), Trapped (2016) and Bhavesh Joshi Superhero (2018) and was the showrunner and co-director on Sacred Games (2018), Netflix’s first Indian original.
Films: Udaan, DevD, Masaan among many others
Alankrita is one of India’s leading contemporary writer-directors. She is the writer-director of Lipstick Under My Burkha which garnered praise and acclaim from audiences and critics worldwide, winning numerous awards at prestigious international film festivals including Tokyo, Glasgow, MAMI Mumbai Film Festival, and IFFLA. She directed episodes for and co-wrote the first and upcoming second season of Amazon Prime Video’s critically acclaimed series Made in Heaven. She has also written and directed feature films like Dolly Kitty Aur Woh Chamakte Sitare that had its world premiere at the Busan International Film Festival. Alankrita is the writer, director, and showrunner for Netflix’s drama series Bombay Begums, a series that revolves around the lives of five women in an urban Indian city.
Films: Lipstick Under My Burkha, Dolly Kitty Aur Woh Chamakte Sitare and My Beautiful Wrinkles
Neeraj is among India’s leading contemporary filmmakers and is a National Award-winning director of the critically acclaimed Indo-French drama Masaan. The film received widespread acclaim from critics, mainstream media, and audiences alike, currently ranks among the top 250 films of all time from India. It won the FIPRESCI prize and the Promising Future prize (Prix avenir prometteur) in the Un Certain Regard section at the 68th Cannes Film Festival. Aside from feature films, Neeraj co-directed the second season of Netflix’s acclaimed flagship crime drama series Sacred Games. In addition to his film and television work, Neeraj is a highly sought-after commercial director. He directed the widely popular Fuelled By Love commercial for British Airways and the Touch of Care commercial for Vicks, which starred real-life transgender activist Gauri Sawant.
Films: Masaan, Juice and Ajeeb Dastaan
Ritesh Batra created a world sensation in 2013 with his wonderful The Lunchbox (2013), a bittersweet romantic comedy as well as a sensitive portrait of the city of Mumbai, torn between tradition and progress. Loved by all and everywhere on the planet, “Dabba” is strikingly the young director’s first feature film. A great start for Batra, which augurs well for his career to come. Born in Mumbai in 1979 and raised there, Mr. Batra moved to New York where he studied cinema. Before his now famous “Dabba”, he tried his hand at making shorts which were shown in many an international film festival.
Films: The Lunchbox, Photograph and Café Regular, Cairo
Independent Indian cinema has created some of the most praised films in recent years. Works such as “Court” (2014), a compelling legal drama, and “Ship of Theseus” (2012), an existential investigation, have received international attention. These films not only entertain but also prompt discussions about societal issues, gender, and identity.
Read More : Top 5 Indian Film Festivals
We, as an audience, can nourish this flourishing ecology in our own ways. Here’s how.
Independent Films: Explore away from the mainstream. Find hidden gems within film festivals, online platforms, and film reviewer recommendations.
Spread The Word: Share your findings and recommendations with friends and family. Social media buzz can dramatically increase the reach of an independent film.
Support Film Festivals: Visiting a film festival lets one see groundbreaking films, but it also shows support to independent filmmakers.
Independent filmmaking in India is the irrepressible spirit of storytellers. With relentless devotion, minimal resources, and a great deal of ingenuity, they are making a place for themselves. By embracing these unsung stars and their stories, we might be including even more richness within the Indian cinematic landscape and uncovering a treasure trove of stories that await revelation. You can also start your career as an independent filmmaker and Diffr is always there to find the best talent for your project, be it actor, cinematographer, writer, etc
