Historicizing Myths in Contemporary India: Cinematic Representations and Nationalist Agendas in Bollywood

This book examines cinematic practices in Bollywood as narratives that assist in shaping the imagination of the age, especially in contemporary India. It examines historical films released in India since the new millennium and analyses cinema as a reflection of the changing socio-political and economic conditions at any given period. The essays in the volume also illuminate different perspectives on how cinematic historical representations follow political patterns and market compulsions, giving precedence to a certain past over the other creating a narrative suited for the dominant narrative of the present. From Mughal-e-Azam to Padmavati, and Bajirao Mastani to Raazi, the essays show how creating history out of myths validate hegemonic identities in a rapidly evolving Indian society.

The volume will be of interest to scholars of film and media studies, literature and culture studies, and South Asian studies.