100 years of Bollywood: The milestones

With this film, Dhundiraj Govid Phalke laid the foundation of the Indian film industry which is now popularly known as Bollywood. During the 1920s, film and theatre plots revolved solely around mythological stories. This film narrates the story of the legendary King Harishchandra and his life. Female roles were played by men as acting was considered an indecent profession for women.

Dhundiraj Gopal Phalke (1870-1944) was the father of Indian films. He was popularly known as Dada Saheb Phalke. India's most important film award is named after him. He worked as a photographer until he met a German man, Carl Hertz. Hertz had worked closely with the Lumière brothers who developed cinematography. Phalke was fascinated by the technique and directed 100 films during his career.

Ardeshir Irani produced India's first sound film Alam Ara (The Ornament of the World) in 1931. Its song and dance scenes, which would later become a vital characteristic of Bollywood films, made it a huge success.

Actress Devika Rani (1908-1994) created quite a fuss in conservative India in 1933 with her 4-minute kissing scene in the film ‘Karma’ (Fate). Her husband and producer was Himanshu Rai, who got German director Franz Osten to go to India in the 1920s.

Mary Evans (1908-1996) became a star in Indian cinema in 1935 as "Fearless Nadia" in the film "Hunterwali" (Lady of the Whip). She was the first foreign star in the Indian movie scene. The Australian specialized in action films but she also became an icon of India's fight for independence and a symbol of women's emancipation.

The Indian director and actor Raj Kapoor made Indian films popular outside of the country's borders in the 1950's. He became a star in Soviet Russia, China and other Communist countries with his films, especially Awara (The Tramp), which critically looked at negative aspects of society.

"Mother India" (1957) was the first Indian film to be nominated for an Oscar award. Actress Nargis, who also starred in many films by Raj Kapoor, played the leading role of Radha, who, despite bitter poverty and social injustice, is a strong woman and an even stronger mother.

"Sholay" (Flames of the Sun, 1975) was the first Indian Western. It turned actors Amitabh Bachchan, Dharmendra, Hema Malini and Amjad Khan into superstars and is seen today as the most successful Indian film ever. Even now, children in India know the characters and can recite the dialogues by heart.

Satyajit Ray (1921-1992) was the first Indian director to receive an Oscar in 1992 for his contributions to the film industry. His films of the "Apu Trilogy" won accolades in Cannes and Venice. He was the most dominant representative of Indian film outside of the Bollywood mainstream.

Superstar Shah Rukh Khan has been considered the face and ambassador of Bollywood for more than a decade now. Almost all of his films turn into box office hits. He has fans across the globe and is also very popular in Germany, where he was welcomed by screaming fans at the German film awards, the Berlinale, in 2008.

"Lagaan" (Once upon a time in India) was released in 2001 and was one of the first films from Bollywood to be shown outside of India and Indian diaspora communities. After being nominated for an Oscar, the movie was shown around the world. TIME Magazine called it one of the best films of all times.

In 2003, Aiswarya Rai was the first Indian actress to be on the Cannes Film Festival jury panel. Her films "Devdas" and "Mohabbatein" made her a superstar. She has also acted in a number of international productions.

Composer and singer A. R. Rahman won 2 Oscars and a Golden Globe in 2009 for his music for the film "Slumdog Millionaire." The title song "Jai Ho" (Let victory prevail) topped the charts across the world with the version "You Are My Destiny."