The Melodramatic Public Film Form and Spectatorship in Indian Cinema

What role has Indian cinema played in the history of Indian cultural and political transformations? How have Indian films addressed notions of nationhood, ideas about nation and region, matters of social difference, and conflicts over caste and religion? What cultural visions can be traced through the history of Indian cinema, and how have their co-ordinates changed? What new vistas have emerged?24of national territory, new lifestyles, and urban cultures?24as India has moved from the early days of state formation, through the unravelling of national consensus, down to contemporary globalization?