When the hindi film industry started it mainly dealt with social issues.So the earliest formulae in Bollywood revolved around taboos, untouchability and family values.I think ’Achyut Kanya’ and ’Kismet’ are good examples of this. Then came the age dominated by some good directors.
Though the formula existed but in name the basic battle between good & bad remained a film’s focal point. The hero was an embodiment of good while the villain was unbelievably evil.In fact, from the many films one has seen one might guess that the basic Bollywood formula must have crystalized sometime in the forties and fifties when some great movies were being created.It emerged perhaps as an insurance against the failure of projects with high investment such as the eaarly colour extravaganzas.
According to this formula the hero could do no wrong at all.And the villain could do no good at all.Actors, in this age, were very scared of playing villains because it meant they would get no work as heroes ever.Gradually, however, other formulae began to emerge.There was the classic boy-meets-girl.With Amitabh Bachhan’s rise came the age of the angry young man, a kind of one man fighting machine.But the wheel actually turned a full circle when Shah Rukh Khan’s ’Bazigar’ became a roaring success.For here was the anti-hero as hero- a new formula to wit.
These days the current formula can be called ’Chak De India’ for we are seeing many india-centric films.In conclusion a few remarks.Even in Bollywood the basic formula only serves as the mould.Those who break the mould, become exceptions to the unwritten rule are usually successful.And then its Apna Formula Money Hi Money!