In the late 1960s and early 1970s, romantic movies and action films were in the air. Actors like Rajesh Khanna and Dharmendra, and actresses like Sharmila Tagore, Mumtaz, Leena Chandavarkar and Helen were at the top most echelon. The mid-1970s, was a period for gritty, violent films which were based on gangsters, mafia and bandits. Amitabh Bachchan, emerged as the “angry young man”. Mithun Chakraborty and Anil Kapoor, also started their careers in this era and even lasted in the 1990s. Actresses like Hema Malini, Jaya Bachchan and Rekha were on their top most position in this era.
Sholay (1975) became one of the most successful filsmo fthe era and created history. It was this film that solidified Amitabh Bachchan’s position in heroic roles. The devotional classic Jai Santoshi Ma was also released in 1975 which went on to become another super hit of the century. Another important film from 1975 was Deewar again starring Amitabh Bachchan. Also, the most internationally-acclaimed Hindi film of the 1980s was Mira Nair’s Salaam Bombay.
During the late 1980s and early 1990s, family-centric romantic musicals came back and became the mantra with the success films like Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak (1988), Maine Pyar Kiya (1989), Hum Aapke Hain Kaun (1994) and Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995) and the likes.
Actos like Aamir Khan, Salman Khan and Shahrukh Khan and actresses like Sridevi, Madhuri Dixit, Juhi Chawla and Kajol became the new top actors ruling the Indian Hindi Cinema. Typical comedy flicks that starred Govinda and Akshay Kumar also became quite popular.
Due to Globalization and Liberalization, the 2000s saw a growth in Bollywood’s popularity in the world. The opening up of the overseas market and the explosion of multiplexes in big cities, led to bigger profit ratios for films like Lagaan, Devdas, Koi… Mil Gaya, Kal Ho Naa Ho, Rang De Basanti, Lage Raho Munnabhai, Taare Zameen Par, Ghajini abnd more recently Paa and 3 idiots. Apart from Aamir, Shahrukh and Salman it was Hrithik Roshan, Abhishek Bachchan that joined in the league of top actors of the decade. The Hindi film industry has indeed come a long way.