At Home in the World: Co-productions and Indian Alternative Cinema

Abstract

Several Indian filmmakers and production houses making ‘alternative’ and ‘independent films’ have sought to develop co-production deals with European film funds, international film festivals, film markets and sales agents. Their bid is to build a profile with art house and ‘specialty cinema’ audiences in Europe, Asia and the USA, while also seeking to impact the Indian domestic market. This article analyses the assembling of such productions, and their aesthetic form, including a reflection on charges that their adaptation to international distribution requires a conformity to what is acceptable and intelligible to ‘international audiences’. It also explores how alternative films oriented to international art cinema affect the understanding of what constitutes ‘national cinemas’. The article explores these themes through two films, Qissa (2013) and The Lunchbox (2012).