sulochana

Preserving our Film Heritage

 

COLLECTING, CATALOGUING AND DIGITIZING

A film may be released at a particular time, but it is viewed differently at different times and it is this timeless quality of cinema that makes it so important to preserve films.

In order to preserve our invaluable but increasingly endangered corpus of moving images, the foundation will work towards the acquisition, collection and documentation of film and film related material. This would include conserving and preserving all moving images in their original format using best storage practices and the cataloguing and digitization of the material to improve public access.

Another essential aspect of archiving that we will focus on is the continual search for India’s lost films, their recovery, preservation and restoration.

At present, the foundation is archiving the founder’s personal collection of films and film-related memorabilia that includes both Indian and foreign films in a temperature and humidity controlled vault and an extensive collection of original film posters, cameras from the beginning of cinema, lobby cards, letters, scripts etc.

We can also provide logistical support and facilitate technical collaboration to advise studios, archives and individual copyright holders on optimum storage practices for film preservation and restoration.

 

ARCHIVAL PROJECTS:

kardar

A.R. KARDAR ARCHIVAL PROJECT

A.R. KARDAR (1904 -1989) Abdur Rashid Kardar was a man of many parts: actor, director, producer, writer –he was a pioneer of the Indian film industry. Born in Lahore, in…

kidar

KIDAR SHARMA ARCHIVAL PROJECT

KIDAR SHARMA – STARMAKER (1910 – 1999) Raj Kapoor said he “is a one-man institution who taught me all I know about film-making.” He was speaking of Kidar Sharma: painter,…

saeed-akhtar-mirza-cover

SAEED AKHTAR MIRZA ARCHIVAL PROJECT

Born in 1943 in Mumbai, filmmaker, screenwriter and author, Saeed Akhtar Mirza, was one of the most important directors of the Indian cinema’s New Wave in the ‘70s and ‘80s.…

PRAN KRISHAN SIKAND ARCHIVAL PROJECT

PRAN KRISHAN SIKAND (1920 -2013) He was known as the “Gentleman Villain.” In an award-winning career spanning over six decades,   Pran played over 350 roles that left an indelible…

J. B. H. WADIA ARCHIVAL PROJECT

  J. B. H. Wadia (1901 – 1986):  Jamshedji Bomanji Hormasji Wadia (commonly referred to as JBH) was a scion of the Lavji Wadia family, Master Shipbuilders to the East India…