A collection of 2,500 film posters from 1942 onward have been added to the National Film Archive of India in Pune. Hindi films have the maximum representation, with 1,500 posters, while there are 600 posters for South Indian language films too.
The highlight of the collection is a six-sheet poster of K Asif’s Mughal-e-Azam (1960). The 10 feet-by-five feet poster is made up of six sheets, which include depictions of the iconic film’s famous war and sheesh mahal sequences, and the major actors, including Akbar (Prithviraj Kapoor), Salim (Dilip Kumar) and Anarkali (Madhubala).
“This has been a significant addition to NFAI’s ever-growing collection of film related material,” said Prakash Magdum, NFAI director, in a statement. “We appeal to all film lovers to come forward and provide films and film-related material so that it can be preserved for future generations.”
The archive has also acquired 90 films starring Bollywood legend Amitabh Bachchan, including the unreleased film Zamaanat. The haul includes posters featuring India’s original action queen Fearless Nadia, Dilip Kumar, Madhubala, Raj Kapoor, Meena Kumari, Guru Dutt, Nargis, Shammi Kapoor, Dev Anand, Mumtaz, Dharmendra, Dara Singh. There are also posters from 150 recent films in the collection.
All images courtesy National Film Archive of India.
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