Is there anywhere else like India? The vast, ancient nation has brought us everything from mathematics to yoga to some of the best food in the world, and with its unique blend of countless cultures and languages it’s a truly astounding country to visit, and has an enormous and acclaimed tradition of cinema, as well.
Not everybody has the time or money to just head to the Taj Mahal, or marvel at elephants in the wild, but with the power of film you can get a glimpse into this incredible land and its people. Whether you’ve visited and loved the subcontinent, or want to dive into a world that’s completely different to what you’re used to, then check out our list of the 10 best movies about India and Indian culture!
Devdas
Epic doesn’t begin to cover this 2002 period romantic drama, which like all the best Bollywood films is a tale of family tensions, betrayal, and the limitations of the power of love. Shah Rukh Khan stars as the eponymous Devdas, a wealthy law student who returns to India to marry his childhood sweetheart (Aishwarya Rai), only for his parents to wind up opposing the union on the grounds of social status. It really doesn’t get more Indian than this, and although Devdas (based on a 1913 novel of the same name) may have its detractors, there’s no denying its importance.
Kabhi Kushi Kabhie Gham
Family isn’t just important in Indian culture, but is the basis of almost all social life up and down the huge, varied subcontinent, so movies about your nearest and dearest capture something really important about the country. Kabhi Kushi Kabhie Gham follows a wealthy Indian family who learn their adopted son has married below his status, and their attempts to deal with that while the lovers try to battle through the strong social forces that want to keep them apart. Amitabh Bachchan and Shah Rukh Khan star, and with these two Bollywood titans in lead roles (plus an epic soundtrack) this movie was always bound to be a big hit.
Jodha Akbar
A list of movies that cover Indian culture and history needs to have at least one film about the various empires that have laid claim to this land, and Jodha Akbar fulfils that need. Like most classic Bollywood films, at its heart it’s a love story, but the historical context also teaches viewers a lot about what India was going through while under the control of the Mughal Empire. The movie is loosely based on real people, and follows the tale of a Rajput princess (Aishwarya Rai) who is forced to marry a Muslim prince (Hrithik Roshan) for political reasons, only for the pair to slowly fall in love while they learn about each other’s cultures.
Mother India
When it was released in 1957, Mother India was the biggest box office earner in Indian history, and was being shown in theaters across the country until the nineties. The movie follows a desperately poor single mother (the legendary actor turned politician Nargis Dutt) as she battles an evil money lender while trying to raise her sons. This movie is so much more than a drama, and for many is considered to be an important part of the Indian nation-building process, being released a decade after the country gained independence from British rule. Really, there’s few better films to watch if you want to understand more about India and its culture.
Masaan
This stunning depiction of life in modern India is told via the stories of two characters: Devi and Deepak. Although the pair only meet near the end of the movie, through their tales we get a sense of various facets of what it’s like to be an Indian person. The film covers themes like governmental corruption, the power of gossip in small communities, and class divides, while also giving the viewer a gorgeous story that’s beautifully shot.
Hotel Mumbai
Dev Patel stars in this action thriller that retells the story of the 2008 Mumbai attacks, which claimed the lives of 175 people. The movie specifically focuses on events at Taj Mahal Palace Hotel, one of the twelve locations targetted by Lashkar-e-Taiba, an extremist Islamist group. This event scarred India in a way that has had a lasting impact, and some observers feel that it is one of the main reasons for the rise of Narendra Modi’s racist and far-right Hindu nationalist government. As a film, Hotel Mumbai is thrilling from start to finish, as well as being stunningly shot.
Chak De! India
While cricket is undoubtedly the most popular sport in India, field hockey is beloved by large swathes of the nation too, as shown by the success of this film about a former player who coaches the national women’s team to glory. Starring Shah Rukh Khan, the film also touches on anti-muslim prejudice, regional differences in India, and the growing feminist movement in the country, so lots of big topics that get to the heart of many aspects of life in India.
Lagaan
You can’t have a list of the best movies about India and its culture without mentioning cricket, and Lagaan is the most popular and important film that has the sport at its heart. The movie is set in Central India in the time of the British Raj, and follows a group of villagers who are struggling to pay high taxes to their British rulers. One of the army officers in charge of overseeing the village challenges the locals to a game of cricket with the promise that if they win, they won’t have to pay. However, the Indians have never played the game before, and set about learning. India is a lot more than colonialism and cricket, but those two things are vital to understanding the country’s make up and culture, and in Lagaan you get a healthy dose of both.
3 Idiots
This satirical take on the Indian education system is brilliantly funny, but also says some really important things about the country and how it treats its youth. Some observers think it even impacted education policy in the subcontinent, such was its influence and popularity. The film follows three friends who meet at university, and we see them deal with an overbearing college director and the pressures of doing well in school. At times it can seem like a classic college campus story, but there’s a lot going on under the surface here, with some really radical subtext about the horrors of Indian schooling.
Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge
Although much of this film is set outside of India, this movie about two Indians who fall in love while travelling across Europe still says a lot about the country and its culture. Again, families getting in the way of love is a big theme here, as is the idea of Indian identity, which is a thread that runs throughout the movie.