South Asian cinema refers to the cinema of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. The terms Asian cinema, Eastern cinema and Oriental cinema in common usage often encompass South Asia as well as East Asia and South East Asia. See also Asian cinema, East Asian cinema and Southeast Asian cinema.
Styles and genres
The scope of South Asian cinema is huge and takes in a wide array of different film styles, linguistic regions and genres. South Asian cinema is particularly famous in the West for:
Melodramatic films
Action films
Curry Westerns
Escapism
Musicals
Romance films
Masala films
Parallel Cinema
Drama films
Thriller films
Art films
Indian neo-noir
Neorealism
Heroic bloodshed
Historical drama
Bangladeshi film industry, is the Bengali language film industry based in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The industry often generally referred to as Dhallywood, has been a significant film industry since the early 1970s. The 1960s, 1970s, 1980s and the first half of the 1990s were the golden years for Bangladeshi films as the industry produced many successful films. The industry has recently begun receiving international acclaim and many Bangladeshi movies are getting international release.
Dhallywood, is a portmanteau of the words Dhaka and Hollywood.
India contains many state languages which have film industries centered on them. Although Hindi is the official language of government business of northern regions of India, its often-used dialect Hindustani is the most widespread language but covering only 40% of the total population, and English is widely understood irrespective of region, the state languages are preserved for official use by different states in India, and many have as many speakers as an average European nation. Regional industries have also tended to produce a higher percentage of serious art film and political film. Bangladeshi cinema is filmed in Bengali and Sri Lankan cinema is filmed in Sinhala and Tamil. Last but not least is Indonesian cinema. In the beginning the Indonesian cinema grew after World War I, rooted from the Folk Theater Drama called Dardanela. Under Usmar Ismail, Indonesian cinema became the new entertainment in 1950 to 1980. Hundred of film stars were born, such as: Citra Dewi (1960), Tanty Yosepha (1970). Yenny Rachman and Christine Hakim (1980) and Dian Sastro (late 1990s). Teguh Karya was one of the leading Film Director in Indonesia after the era of Usmar Ismail. Now, by the popularity of television, film is replaced with electronic cinema which is popular as sinetron. This industry has made the Indian born producer, Raam Punjabi, a tycon of sinetron in Indonesia.
Hindi Cinema, popularly known as Bollywood, is based in Mumbai. This film industry is the most prolific and popular in South Asia.
Telugu film industry, sometimes known as Tollywood, which comes from the mixture of Hollywood and Telugu, based in Hyderabad, Telangana. It is one of the three popular branches of Indian Cinema. It was formerly located in Chennai, Tamil Nadu.
Tamil Cinema, the Tamil film industry based in the Kodambakkam area of Chennai (formerly Madras). It is one of the three popular branches of Indian Cinema. Tamil films are also produced in Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Singapore and Canada.
Chhollywood, the Chhattisgarhi language based film industry based in the state of Chhattisgarh.
Dogri cinema, Dogri Language cinema of Jammu region.
Malayalam Cinema, Malayalam film industry, sometimes known as Mollywood, based in Kochi and Trivandrum in Kerala. Several of its directors such as Shaji N. Karun have also received international acclaim.
Kannada film industry, based in Bangalore, Karnataka.
Bengali film industry, long centered in the Tollygunge district of Kolkata (formerly Calcutta). This film industry is known for producing many internationally acclaimed films by directors such as Satyajit Ray, Budhhadeb Dasgupta, Mrinal Sen and Ritwik Ghatak.
Gujarati cinema, based in Gujarat.
Haryanvi cinema, Haryanvi language cinema, based in Haryana
Kashmiri cinema, Kashmiri Language cinema of Kashmir valley.
Cinema of Rajasthan, Based in Rajasthan
Cinema of Odisha, the Odia language film industry based in Bhubaneshwar and Cuttack.
Marathi film industry, based in Mumbai and Pune.
Punjabi film industry, based in Punjab, India.
Assamese film industry, based in Assam. This is the only major film industry in North-East India.
Tulu cinema Tulu language speaking regions of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.
Santali cinema Santali speaking regions on Jharkhand, West Bengal, Odisha & Assam.
Nepali film industry, the Nepali film industry based in Kathmandu, has recently begun receiving international acclaim with films such as The Black Hen (2015), Kagbeni (2006) and others.
Tharu Cinema based in Terai,Tharuhat is the home of the Tharu languages cinema.
Balochi cinema, based in Quetta, Balochistan is the home of Balochi language film productions.
Lollywood, based in Lahore, Punjab is the home of Punjabi cinema.
Kariwood, based in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan is the home of the Urdu cinema.
Pashto cinema, based in Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is the home of Pashto language film productions.
Sindhi cinema, based in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan is the home of the Sindhi language film productions.
Afghan film industry
Sri Lankan film industry
Sri Lankan Tamil film industry
Bhutanese film industry
Satyajit Ray – Bengali film director, widely regarded as one of the greatest auteurs of 20th century cinema (Apu trilogy).
Ritwik Ghatak – Bengali film director, (Nagarik, Meghe Dhaka Tara).
Mrinal Sen – Bengali film director, has won awards at major film festivals (Baishey Shravan, Bhuvan Shome).
K. Balachander – Tamil director.
Bimal Roy – Hindi film director (Devdas (1955 film), Do Bigha Zameen.
Mani Ratnam – Generally works in Tamil films but has worked in Hindi, Malayalam, Telugu and Kannada industries. (Kannathil Muthamittal, Guru).
Apichatpong Weerasethakul = Thai director, winner of Palme d'Or in 2010.
Guru Dutt – Hindi actor, director and producer of the 1950s and '60s (Mr. & Mrs. '55, Kaagaz Ke Phool, Pyaasa).
V. Shantaram – Hindi director and actor (Do Aankhen Barah Haath).
Ashutosh Gowariker – Contemporary Hindi actor, director and producer (Lagaan).
Budhhadeb Dasgupta - Uttara, internationally acclaimed filmmaker known for Surreal and Magical Realism.
Vijay Anand – Bollywood actor, director and producer mainly during the 1960s and '70s. (Johnny Mera Naam, Jewel Thief)
Hrishikesh Mukherjee – Hindi film director known for (Anand, Abhimaan).
K. Asif - Mughal-e-Azam
Mahboob
Fateh Lohani
Khan Ataur Rahman
Zahir Raihan
Subhash Dutta
Ehtesham
Chashi Nazrul Islam
Alamgir Kabir
Narayan Ghosh Mita
Tareque Masud
Tanvir Mokammel
Morshedul Islam
Humayun Ahmed - One of the most successful writer and director of Bangladesh.
Mostofa Sarwar Farooki
Kamar Ahmed Saimon
Amitabh Reza Chowdhury
Abu Shahed Emon
Puttanna Kanagal - (Belli moda).
K. Viswanath - Telugu director known for films like Swathi Muthyam, Swayam Krushi.
Kamal Amrohi - Mahal Pakeeza Razia Sultan
Sonali Gulati – contemporary independent filmmaker, activist, and feminist who has made award-winning documentary and experimental films.
Nasir Hussain - (Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak)
Sudhir Mishra – Contemporary director and screenwriter (Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi, Chameli (Movie)).
Bharathiraja – Tamil director who captured village life (Muthal Mariyathai, Vedham Pudhithu).
Saawan Kumar
Balu Mahendra – Sri Lanka-born Tamil and Malayalam director (Sandhya Raagam, Veedu).
Prakash Jha – Contemporary Hindi director (Gangaajal, Apaharan).
S.S. Rajamouli - A highly successful commercial Telugu director.
Cheran – Award-winning Tamil director and actor (Autograph, Thavamai Thavamirundhu)
Adoor Gopalakrishnan – Malayalam director (Elippathayam, Swayamvaram).
Mani Shankar – Director of Bollywood action thrillers (16 December, Tango Charlie)
S. Shankar – Tamil director and producer (Mudhalvan, Indian, Anniyan, Sivaji: The Boss)
A. R. Murugadoss – Kollywood and Tollywood director (Ramana, Ghajini, Thuppakki, Stalin)
Ram Gopal Varma – Tollywood and Bollywood director known for his gritty films. (Shiva, Rangeela).
Shekhar Kapur – British India-born director and producer (Elizabeth, Bandit Queen).
Shyam Benegal – Important part of the New India Cinema movement (Ankur, Bhumika).
Upendra - (A, Om).
K. S. Ravikumar - Tamil commercial film director (Muthu, Padayappa, Dasavathaaram)
Madhur Bhandarkar – Director and screenwriter Page 3, Chandni Bar).
Deepa Mehta – Indian-born Canadian director best known for her "elements trilogy". Fire, Earth, Water).
Aparna Sen – Bengali Indian actress and director (36 Chowringhee Lane, Mr. and Mrs. Iyer).
Ketan Mehta – (Bhavni Bhavai, Maya Memsaab).
Rakesh Roshan – (Karan Arjun, Krrish).
Mira Nair – (Monsoon Wedding, Salaam Bombay!).
Girish Karnad - (Anand Bhairavi).
Govind Nihalani – Cinematographer and director.
Santosh Sivan – Award-winning cinematographer and director (The Terrorist, Asoka).
Gurinder Chadha – British director (Bend It Like Beckham, Bride and Prejudice).
Karan Johar – Actor, screenwriter and director; hosts TV chat show, Koffee with Karan (Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna).
Prakash Mehra – (Zanjeer, Hera Pheri).
Manmohan Desai – (Parvarish, Amar Akbar Anthony).
Basu Chatterjee – (Chitchor).
Rajkumar Santoshi – (Ghayal, Andaz apna apna).
Partho Sen-Gupta – Avant-garde independent director (Hava Aney Dey).
Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra – Director and screenwriter (Aks, Rang De Basanti).
Sanjay Leela Bhansali – Devdas, Black)
Vikram Bhatt – (Inteha, Deewane Huye Pagal).
Sanjay Gupta – (Zinda)
Yash Chopra – Veteran producer and director (Waqt, Deewaar).
Ramesh Sippy – (Sholay, Andaz)
Vidhu Vinod Chopra – (An Encounter with Faces, 1942: A Love Story).
Nagathihalli Chandrashekhar - (America! America!!, Amruthadhaare).
Yograj Bhat - (Mungaru Male).
Prashanta Nanda - Oriya film director who won most of the National Awards for his contribution for Oriya Film Industry.
Chhabi Biswas
Rabi Ghosh
Tapen Chatterjee
Uttam Kumar
Soumitra Chatterjee
Tulsi Chakraborty
Subhash Dutta
Anwar Hossain
Abdur Razzak
Alamgir
Aaryan Sigdel
Aamir Khan
Abhishek Bachchan
Ajay Devgan
Ajith Kumar
Akkineni Nagarjuna
Akkineni Nageswara Rao
Akshay Kumar
Ambareesh
Amrish Puri
Amitabh Bachchan
Anil Chatterjee
Anil Kapoor
Anubhav Mohanty
Ashok Kumar
Allu Arjun
Arshad Warsi
Arifin Shuvoo
ATM Shamsuzzaman
Bappy Chowdhury
Balakrishna
Balraj Sahni
Bulbul Ahmed
Chiranjeevi
Deepak Adhikari Dev
Dharmendra
Dilip Kumar
Faisal Rehman
Feroz Khan
Humayun Faridi
Hamza Ali Abbasi
Humayun Saeed
Hrithik Roshan
Jagathi Sreekumar
Jayan
Jackie Shroff
Jeetendra
Kamal Hassan
Mohib Mirza
Moammar Rana
Madavan
Mahesh Babu
Manoj Kumar
Mehmood
M.G. Ramachandran
Mithun Chakraborty
Mammooty
Mohammad Ali
Mohanlal
Mukesh
Nadeem
Nana Patekar
N. T. Rama Rao
Pran
Prithviraj Sukumaran
Raj Kapoor
Rajesh Hamal
Rishi Kapoor
Rajkumar
Rajinikanth
Rajesh Khanna
Ramesh Aravind
Shammi Kapoor
Raaj Kumar
Shamoon Abbasi
Sanjeev Kumar
Surya Sivakumar
Dev Anand
Om Puri
Naseeruddin Shah
Anant Nag
Kishore Kumar
Manoj Bajpai
Saif Ali Khan
Salman Khan
Sanjay Dutt
Shakib Khan
Shaan
Shahrukh Khan
Siddhanta Mahapatra
Symon Sadik
Shankar Nag
Sunil Dutt
Sunny Deol
Suresh Gopi
Thilakan
Sivaji Ganeshan
Upendra
Waheed Murad
Ritesh Deshmukh
Vijay
Venkatesh
Vinod Khanna
Vinod Mehra
Vishnuvardhan
Vidyut Jamwal
Ranjit Mallick
Riaz
Salman Shah
Ananta Jalil
Pahari Sanyal
Prosenjit Chatterjee
Jeet (actor)
Chiranjeet
Tapas Paul
Manna
Ilias Kanchan
Sohel Rana (actor)
Dipjol
Rahsaan Islam
Raisul Islam Asad
Mamnun Hasan Emon
Kazi Maruf
Ferdous Ahmed
Omar Sani
Chunky Pandey
Wasim
Zafar Iqbal
Uttam Mohanty
Vikram
Anmol K.C.
Aishwarya Rai - Miss World 1994
Amrita Acharia - (Game Of Thrones) Nepali Actress
Asin Thottumkal
Apu Biswas
Aparajita Mohanty
Archita Sahu
Barsha Priyadarshini
Zeenat Aman - Miss Asia Pacific 1970
Mahiya Mahi
Shabana ( Dhallywood Actress )
Bobita ( Dhallywood Actress )
B. Saroja Devi
Lara Dutta - Miss Universe 2000, Miss Intercontinental 1997
Padmini
Diana Hayden - Miss World 1997
Madhubala
Madhuri Dixit
Nutan
Rekha
Nicole Faria - Miss Earth 2010
Dia Mirza - Miss Asia Pacific 2000
Meena Kumari
Noor Jehan
Trisha Krishnan
Divya Spandana (Ramya)
Devika Rani
Celina Jaitly - Miss India 2001
Neha Dhupia - Miss India 2002
Vyjayanthimala
Hema Malini
Smita Patil
Soundarya
Sridevi
Rani Mukerji
Yukta Mookhey - Miss World 1999
Manisha Koirala
Prema
Sharmila Tagore
Shabana Azmi
Bipasha Basu
Jaya Bachchan
Jayanthi
Nargis
Kajol
Nandita Das
Tabu
Dimple Kapadia
Sushmita Sen - Miss Universe 1994
Juhi Chawala - Miss India 1984
Karishma Kapoor
Soha Ali Khan
Sonali Bendre
Priyanka Karki - Miss Teen
Priyanka Chopra - Miss World 2000
Urmila Matondkar
Preity Zinta
Kareena Kapoor
Amrita Rao
Ayesha Takia
Shriya Saran
Popy
Moushumi
Achol
Purnima
Shabnur
Bobby
Rituparna Sengupta
Koel Mallick
Debashree Roy
Rachana Banerjee
Anju Ghosh
Suchitra Sen
Bidya Sinha Saha Mim
Alisha Pradhan
