Includes bibliographical references and index.

1. Introduction -- 2. The production and distribution of popular Hindi cinema -- 3. Narrative style, important themes and key conflicts -- 4. Genre and Hindi cinema -- 5. Contemporary Hindi filmmakers' reflections and perspectives.

Bollywood' is the dominant global term to refer to the prolific Hindi language film industry in Bombay (renamed Mumbai in 1995). Characterised by music, dance routines, melodrama, lavish production values and an emphasis on stars and spectacle, Bollywood films have met with box-office success and enthusiastic audiences from India to West Africa to Russia, and throughout the English-speaking world. In Bollywood, anthropologist and film scholar Tejaswini Ganti provides a guide to the cultural, social and political significance of Hindi cinema, outlining the history and structure of the Bombay film industry, and the development of popular Hindi filmmaking since the 1930s. Providing information and commentary on the key players in Bollywood, including composers, directors and stars, as well as material from current filmmakers themselves, the areas covered in Bollywood include: * history of Indian cinema * main themes and characteristics of Hindi cinema * significant films, directors and stars * production and distribution of Bollywood films * interviews with actors, directors and screenwriters.