| Acknowledgments | p. xiii |
| Indian Popular Cinema: Mapping the Contours | p. 1 |
| In the Throes of Change: Exhibition, Production, and Distribution | p. 15 |
| Exhibition | p. 16 |
| Production | p. 24 |
| Distribution | p. 35 |
| Global Markets | p. 40 |
| Ancillary Markets | p. 44 |
| Between Film and Television: Shifting Axis | p. 46 |
| Underworld Dons and Racketeers | p. 51 |
| Conclusion | p. 55 |
| Endnotes | p. 57 |
| Shifting Currents: State and Cinema | p. 59 |
| National Film Development Corporation | p. 60 |
| Importation of Films | p. 65 |
| Relaxation of Imports | p. 67 |
| Politics of Censorship | p. 73 |
| State Governments and the Film Industry | p. 88 |
| Conclusion | p. 91 |
| Endnotes | p. 92 |
| Masala Film: Aesthetics and Politics | p. 95 |
| Popular Cinema as a Sociocultural Force | p. 97 |
| Popular Cinema and Politics | p. 98 |
| Sources and Influences | p. 101 |
| Storytelling | p. 103 |
| Hybridity | p. 108 |
| An Indian Aesthetic? | p. 111 |
| Middle Cinema | p. 115 |
| Conclusion | p. 116 |
| Endnotes | p. 117 |
| Film Music: Pleasure and Popularity | p. 119 |
| Film Music Industry | p. 123 |
| Aesthetic of the Song | p. 126 |
| Major Types of Songs | p. 131 |
| Hybrid Music and National Consciousness | p. 138 |
| Background Score | p. 139 |
| Conclusion | p. 143 |
| Endnotes | p. 143 |
| Sexuality: Repression and Voyeuristic Excess | p. 145 |
| Sexuality and Ideology | p. 145 |
| Female Sensuality | p. 147 |
| Romance and Sex | p. 149 |
| Dominant Patterns of Male-Female Relationships | p. 152 |
| Sex as Box Office "Ingredient" | p. 156 |
| Rain Sequences | p. 159 |
| Institutional Response | p. 162 |
| Conclusion | p. 169 |
| Endnotes | p. 169 |
| Snake Movies: Myth and Sexuality | p. 173 |
| Genre Characteristics of Snake Movies | p. 174 |
| Myth and Sexuality | p. 175 |
| Nagina: A Close Analysis | p. 179 |
| Nagamandala: A Close Analysis | p. 185 |
| Conclusion | p. 196 |
| Endnotes | p. 197 |
| References | p. 199 |
| Author Index | p. 207 |
| Subject Index | p. 211 |
| List of Tables | |
| Growth of Cinemas in India | |
| Cinemas in India by State and Type (1983 and 1997) | |
| Total Number of Theaters and After Tax Box Office Revenue (1980-87) | |
| Indian and Foreign Films Censored in Selected Years | |
| Feature Films Produced by Language and Year, 1984-88 | |
| Pictures Produced and Released in South India, 1931-1984 | |
| Comparative Costs of Hindi Film, 1975, 1985 | |
| Total Export Revenues 1979 through February 1989 | |
| Number of Films Sold and Revenue from Key Export Markets for Indian Films (1988) | |
| Statewise Breakdown of Theaters Completed Under NFDC's Theater Financing Scheme and Total Loans Disbursed (1988 and 1995) | |
| List of Illustrations | |
| Rajkumar playing double role in Shankaraguru | |
| Bhanumati and N.S. Krishnan in Nallathambi | |
| Akkineni and Anjali in Mayalamari | |
| Shivaji and Girija in Manorama | |
| Bangalore Theatre showing a Kannada film | |
| Shringar Theatre, Hubli surrounded by shops | |
| Kottureshwara theater under construction | |
| Superstar Rajanikant and Mammootty in Dalapathi | |
| Postcard showing Salman Khan and Madhuri Dixit in a scene from Hum Aapke Hain Kaun? | |
| Poster from Mission Kashmir | |
| Chamakte Sitare international concert poster | |
| Last scene from Paar, an NFDC financed film | |
| Victor Banerjee and Swatilekha Chatterji in Ghare Bhaire | |
| Bill Board of an imported film in Madras | |
| Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved. |