Guru Dutt, Raj Kapoor and the Golden Age of Hindi Cinema in the 1950s

There is a widespread belief that the 1950s were a time of great Hindi films, in terms of stories, songs and film-making. Seventy five years later, fans still remember those songs and those stars and most of all, those directors. We look back and call it the Golden age. What does that mean?

“I think it’s partly because the 1950s are also seen as a kind of Golden Age of India,” according to Rachel Dwyer, a former professor of film at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) who has written several books and articles on Hindi cinema. “A figure like Nehru at the time was seen as a major world figure. But also something exciting going on in Indian cinema at the time,” she said.

“We saw several great directors working, the rise of major stars, playback singing being normalised and the stories too, which were usually about a hero looking to find a place in this new world, really spoke to people in a very direct way, and not just people in India, of course, but people across the world”, she said in a podcast discussion with Sidharth Bhatia.

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