In the patriarchal society of early 20th-century India, women had to overcome social taboos to perform in front of the camera, when films started getting made in the country. The first Indian women to be cast in films were ostracized by their community, leaving the door open for Jewish and Anglo-Indian women who were not bound by the same traditions. With the arrival of the talkies, they faded out and Indian women slowly but surely established themselves as an integral part of the film industry, playing an influential role in a medium that captured the imagination and hearts of a nation. At our Online Talk #MoreThanHeroines, filmmaker and film archivist Shivendra Singh Dungarpur will tell the fascinating stories of some of these remarkable pioneering women who have left an indelible mark on the pages of India’s cinematic history.

Please note the talk link will be shared a couple of hours before the talk

About the speaker

Shivendra Singh Dungarpur is an award-winning filmmaker, producer and film archivist. He is the Founder-Director of Film Heritage Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to the preservation of India’s film heritage. He was elected to the Executive Committee of the International Federation of Film Archives (FIAF) for a second term in 2019. Under the banner of Dungarpur Films, he has directed and produced close to 1000 commercials and three feature documentaries including “Celluloid Man” (2012) that won two National Awards and travelled to over fifty festivals around the world.