Censorship, Taxes, Organization of Film Bodies

1918 - Indian Cinematograph Act. This allowed for censorship and film licensing.

1920 - Film Censor Boards set up in Bombay, Calcutta, Madras and Rangoon.

1921 - Kohinoor's Bhakta Vidur banned for its political implications.

1922 - Entertainment Tax introduced in Bombay and Bengal.

1927 - Indian Cinematograph Committee (of inquiry) was set up.

1928 - Report by Indian Cinematograph Committee.

1932 - Motion Picture Society of India, Bombay formed.

1936 - Bengal Motion Picture Association, Calcutta formed.

1937 - Indian Motion Picture Producers' Association, Bombay established.

1938 - South Indian Film Chamber of Commerce, Madras setup.

          -Indian Motion Picture Distributors' Association, Bombay formed.

1940 - Film Advisory Board, Bombay setup.

1943 -Propaganda films sanctioned by the (British) government of India made            compulsory vide Defence of India Rules 44A.

1944 - Film Advisory Committee (for distribution of raw film) established.

1945 - Control on raw film distribution removed.

1949 - Exhibition of approved documentaries made compulsory all over again.

         - Indian Cinematograph Act 1918 amended; new censor classifications
            for Unrestricted and Adult (A) viewing.

1953 -Rules of censorship changed to allow for recertification every 5 years; necessary deposit of script with Censor Board.

1964 - National Indian Archive of Film, Pune established.

1973 - Government levies 250% import duty on raw film.

1976 - Censorship under Emergency (imposed by Indira Gandhi then the
            Prime Minister of India).

          - Kissa Kursi Ka, a clear look at politics by Amrit Nahata, is destroyed.

1980 - Film Finance Corporation and Indian Motion Picture Export Corporation            combine to form National Film Development Corporation (NFDC).

A Letter to Mahatma Gandhi (written in1939 by K.A. Abbas). '' Today I bring for your scrutiny - and approval - a new toy my generation has learned to play with, the CINEMA! - You include cinema among evils like gambling, satta, horse-racing etc. .... Now if these statements had come from any other person, it was not necessary to be worried about them ... But your case is different. In view of the great position you hold in this country, and I may say in the world, even the slightest expression of your opinion carries much weight with millions of people. And one of the world's most useful inventions would be allowed to be discarded or what is worse, left alone to be abused by unscruplous people. You are a great soul, Bapu. In your heart there is no room for prejudice. Give this little toy of ours, the cinema, which is not so useless as it looks, a little of your attention and bless it with a smile of toleration.''

 

So Many Cinemas.
Author - B.D. Garga
Publishers - Eminence Designs Private Limited.

Encyclopaedia of Indian Cinema.
Author -Ashish Rajadhyaksha and Paul Willemen
Publishers -Oxford University Press.

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