It is a vast industry generating hundreds of films every year to be enjoyed by hundreds of millions. It is difficult to collect the data. In the silent period, over a thousand films were made in India but only fragments of 18 survive. Much of the industry remains undocumented. It is, therefore, necessary to rely on oral history. There is no academy of cinema in India as there is for theatre, music and literature. The only archive is in Pune. Most production studios have not retained material with a few exceptions like Prabhat Film Company and Wadia Movietone. All this makes it difficult to chronicle film histroy. At the same time, there are a few studies of audiences. It is not known what the audiences really watch. Film songs have an independent life that stretches beyond cinema. They exist in their own right. The home viewing through VCDs and DVDs and the regional cinema should be researched.
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