Bhojpuri cinema has created a new wave in the Indian cinema. The popularity of Bhojpuri films are increasing with each passing day. Bhojpuri cinema was once upon a time a part of the regional movies but today they are slowly becoming part of the mainstream. It is predicted that a time will arrive when the Bhojpuri films will compete with Bollywood films. Already actors like Amitabh Bachchan are taking part in Bhojpuri film industry. The `Shahenshah` of Bollywood has already acted in these flicks. One of them had been Ganga with Ravi Kishan. Even in the international market these films are gaining popularity. In places like Mauritius, Surinam and Bangladesh Bhojpuri cinema is quite in demand.
The first Bhojpuri film that was released was Ganga Maiyya Tohe Piyari Charaihbo was directed by Vishwanath Shahabadi in 1961. The language is similar to Hindi and easier to understand by the Hindi cine going crowd. Soon some other films followed: Jekra Charanwa Mein Lagal Paranwa, Loha Singh, Lage Nahi Chhute Ram, Bidesia and Bhauji. These films were mainly produced during 1960s and 1970s. Even during 1980s a number of films were made in the Bhojpuri cinema like Bitia Bhail Sayan, Bhaiya Dooj, Bairi sawan, Bansuriya Baje, Chandwa ke Taake Chakor, Dharati Maiyya, Dulha Ganga par ke, Ganga Kinare Mora Gaon and others. But in the 1990s there was a slump in the Bhojpuri film industry.
However it was with a film in 2005 that the Bhojpuri cinema was able to revive itself. This flick was Sasura Bada Paisawala. The film was a huge hit and ran to full houses in Varanasi and Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh. Nowadays the Bhojpuri films are also popular in West Bengal, Hyderabad and other Indian states besides Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Some of the popular male actors in Bhojpuri cinema are Ravi Kishan, Manoj Tiwari, Nagma, Kunal Singh, Rani Chatterjee, Rinku Ghosh, Swati Verma, Smriti Sinha, Sambhavana Seth, Vinay Anand, Sudip Pandey, Akhilesh Mishra and Rambha. This film industry has also founded the Bhojpuri Film Awards to encourage the actors, directors and others who are part of Bhojpuri cinema.
Presently the Bhojpuri cinema is on a rising graph. People are ready to invest in the Bhojpuri cinema. In fact the production house of Dilip Kumar and Saira Banu is producing Bhojpuri films and more corporate houses are willing to do the same. It still has several avenues to explore and with correct marketing strategies combined with appealing subjects the Bhojpuri films are sure to make it as big as the film industries: Bollywood, Kollywood, Tollywood and others.
