Dadasaheb Phalke: The one-man miracle

How the filmmaker set India’s moviemaking template

Only half of India’s first ‘indigenous/desi’ film, Raja Harishchandra survives. The industry it spawned is an amalgamation of myriad world cinema influences today, but the debut feature from India’s first auteur-filmmaker Dhundiraj Govind Phalke or Dadasaheb Phalke calls for a fresh review on cinematic merits and pioneering influence in setting an ‘Indian moviemaking’ template. Filmmaking began in India by the turn of the 19th century, with Shree Pundalik, a full feature by Dadasaheb Torne, releasing in 1912. Yet, Raja Harishchandra was the first to be ‘acted, directed and produced’ by an all-Indian team. Shree Pundalik, a recorded stage play, filmed by a British cameraman, processed in London, wasn’t swadeshi enough. Phalke, in sync with the prevailing mood of identity and freedom, proudly asserted, “My films are swadeshi in the sense that the capital, ownership, employees and the stories are swadeshi.” (Navayug, September, 1918). Phalke’s trigger was a chance viewing of a silent classic, The Life of Christ, in 1911. He wrote: “While The Life of Christ was rolling fast before my physical eyes, I was mentally visualizing the gods, Shri Krishna, Shri Ramachandra, their Gokul and Ayodhya…” (Navayug, November, 1917). From Raja Harishchandra to Phalke’s last and only talkie, Gangavataran (1937), his 100-plus films drew plotlines from the epics, the Puranas and Sanskrit literature.