1st Edition
The Evolution of Song and Dance in Hindi Cinema
Exploring the evolution of song and dance in the popular Hindi film, this book examines how these quintessential elements have been and continue to be theorized.
As song ‘picturizations’, as they are frequently called, have evolved, shifting from little more than impromptu moves around tree trunks to highly choreographed affairs featuring scores of professional dancers and exotic backgrounds, their theorization has also developed beyond the initial, peremptory dismissals of earlier critics. Featuring a landmark collection of essays from leading theorists, as well as newer contributions from up-and-coming scholars, this book develops new and exciting ways of thinking about song and dance in Hindi cinema and, in turn, explores how these elements work to (re)define popular Hindi cinema in the twenty-first century.
This collection will be of interest to students and scholars of Hindi cinema, musicals, and global popular cultures. It was originally published as a special issue of South Asian Popular Culture.
Introduction: The evolution of song and dance in Hindi cinema Part I: Early Developments in Song and Dance 1. Synchronicity and continuity of sound and image in early Indian cinema 2. Two dances and a conference 3. Dance Musicalization: Proposing a choreomusicological approach to Hindi film song-and-dance sequences Part II: Contemporary Transformations 4. Romance, piety, and fun: The transformation of qawwali and Islamicate culture in Hindi cinema 5. A.R. Rahman and the aesthetic transformation of Indian film scores 6. Bollywood’s variation on the firanginess theme: Song-and-dance sequences as heterotopic offbeats 7. Kehte Hain Humko Pyar Se Indiawaale: Shaping a contemporary diasporic Indianness in and through the Bollywood Song 8. The picture is not yet over!: The end credits song sequence in Bollywood
Biography
Ajay Gehlawat is the author of several studies of popular Hindi cinema, including Twenty-First Century Bollywood (Routledge, 2015). He is Professor of Interdisciplinary Studies, Theatre and Film at Sonoma State University, CA, USA.
Rajinder Dudrah has authored numerous studies of Indian cinema and is the editor of the South Asian Popular Culture journal. He is Professor of Cultural Studies and Creative Industries at Birmingham City University, UK.
