Bollywood

Amitabh BachchanActor · RetroShah Rukh KhanActor · ModernRekhaActress · RetroMadhuri DixitActress · ModernDeepika PadukoneActress · ContemporaryAlia BhattActress · Contemporary

The Actors

Dilip KumarGolden Age · 1944–1998Raj KapoorGolden Age · 1935–1988Dev AnandGolden Age · 1946–2011Guru DuttGolden Age · 1944–1964Ashok KumarGolden Age · 1936–1997Rajesh KhannaClassic · 1966–2015DharmendraClassic · 1960–2025Amitabh BachchanRetro · 1969–presentVinod KhannaRetro · 1968–2017Anil KapoorModern · 1979–presentJackie ShroffModern · 1982–presentShah Rukh KhanModern · 1988–presentSalman KhanModern · 1988–presentAamir KhanModern · 1984–presentAkshay KumarModern · 1991–presentAjay DevgnModern · 1991–presentSaif Ali KhanModern · 1992–presentHrithik RoshanModern · 2000–presentRanbir KapoorContemporary · 2007–presentRanveer SinghContemporary · 2010–presentVicky KaushalContemporary · 2015–presentAyushmann KhurranaContemporary · 2012–presentRajkummar RaoContemporary · 2010–presentSidharth MalhotraContemporary · 2012–presentVarun DhawanContemporary · 2012–presentNawazuddin SiddiquiContemporary · 2003–presentIrrfan KhanContemporary · 1988–2020Shahid KapoorModern · 2003–presentKartik AaryanContemporary · 2011–presentTiger ShroffContemporary · 2014–presentJohn AbrahamModern · 2003–presentEmraan HashmiModern · 2003–presentSushant Singh RajputContemporary · 2008–2020Sanjay DuttModern · 1981–presentGovindaModern · 1986–presentSunny DeolModern · 1983–presentRishi KapoorModern · 1970–2020Naseeruddin ShahRetro · 1975–presentMithun ChakrabortyRetro · 1976–presentAnupam KherModern · 1984–presentParesh RawalModern · 1982–presentNana PatekarModern · 1978–presentFarhan AkhtarContemporary · 2001–presentPankaj TripathiContemporary · 2004–present

The Actresses

NargisGolden Age · 1935–1967MadhubalaGolden Age · 1942–1964Meena KumariGolden Age · 1939–1972Waheeda RehmanClassic · 1955–presentHema MaliniClassic · 1963–presentRekhaRetro · 1966–presentSrideviRetro · 1967–2018Madhuri DixitModern · 1984–presentKajolModern · 1992–presentAishwarya Rai BachchanModern · 1997–presentRani MukerjiModern · 1996–presentPriyanka Chopra JonasModern · 2002–presentDeepika PadukoneContemporary · 2006–presentKareena Kapoor KhanContemporary · 2000–presentKatrina KaifContemporary · 2003–presentAlia BhattContemporary · 2012–presentKiara AdvaniContemporary · 2014–presentKriti SanonContemporary · 2014–presentShraddha KapoorContemporary · 2010–presentTabuModern · 1985–presentKangana RanautContemporary · 2006–presentVidya BalanModern · 2003–presentAnushka SharmaContemporary · 2008–presentJanhvi KapoorContemporary · 2018–presentSara Ali KhanContemporary · 2018–presentTaapsee PannuContemporary · 2010–presentSonam KapoorContemporary · 2007–presentParineeti ChopraContemporary · 2011–presentBhumi PednekarContemporary · 2015–presentJuhi ChawlaModern · 1986–presentKarisma KapoorModern · 1991–presentPreity ZintaModern · 1998–presentRaveena TandonModern · 1991–presentShabana AzmiRetro · 1974–presentSmita PatilRetro · 1975–1988

The voices behind the screen — the singers who gave Bollywood its unforgettable soundtrack. Tap a name for their story and signature songs.

Lata MangeshkarGolden Age · PlaybackMohammed RafiGolden Age · PlaybackKishore KumarClassic · PlaybackAsha BhosleClassic · PlaybackMukeshGolden Age · PlaybackManna DeyGolden Age · PlaybackKumar SanuModern · PlaybackUdit NarayanModern · PlaybackSonu NigamModern · PlaybackAlka YagnikModern · PlaybackArijit SinghContemporary · PlaybackShreya GhoshalContemporary · PlaybackSunidhi ChauhanContemporary · PlaybackK. K. (Krishnakumar Kunnath)Modern · Playback

1. “Bollywood” blends “Bombay” (now Mumbai) with “Hollywood” — but the industry’s formal name is simply Hindi cinema.
2. Raja Harishchandra (1913) by Dadasaheb Phalke is regarded as the first full-length Indian feature film.
3. Alam Ara (1931) was India’s first sound film — the “talkie” that introduced song and dialogue to Indian screens.
4. Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995) has run continuously at Mumbai’s Maratha Mandir cinema for decades — the longest theatrical run in film history.
5. Sholay (1975) ran for over five years at Mumbai’s Minerva theatre and its dialogues are quoted to this day.
6. Mother India (1957) was India’s first film nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.
7. Kaagaz Ke Phool (1959) was the first Indian film shot in CinemaScope widescreen.
8. The Dadasaheb Phalke Award, India’s highest honour in cinema, is named after the father of Indian film.
9. Lata Mangeshkar was awarded the Bharat Ratna, India’s highest civilian honour — a rare distinction for a musician.
10. Amitabh Bachchan was initially rejected by All India Radio for his now-legendary baritone voice.
11. Gabbar Singh of Sholay was voted one of the greatest screen villains of Indian cinema — and inspired a famous biscuit ad campaign.
12. Kishore Kumar had no formal training in classical music, yet became one of the most influential playback singers ever.
13. Aamir Khan’s Lagaan (2001) is one of only three Indian films nominated for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar.
14. The song “Mere Sapno Ki Rani” from Aradhana was famously picturised on a moving toy train in Darjeeling.
15. Yash Raj Films, founded by Yash Chopra in 1970, grew into one of India’s largest film studios and home of the “Spy Universe.”
16. The three “Khans” of Bollywood — Shah Rukh, Salman and Aamir — were all born in 1965.
17. Guru Dutt’s Pyaasa (1957) appeared on Time magazine’s All-Time 100 Movies list.
18. Playback singing — recording songs separately for actors to lip-sync — is a defining feature of Indian cinema.
19. Dhurandhar (2025) became the highest-grossing Hindi film of all time, crossing ₹1,350 crore worldwide.
20. The item number — a standalone song-and-dance showpiece — is a uniquely Bollywood commercial tradition.
21. Mughal-e-Azam (1960) was so lavish that its climactic “Sheesh Mahal” set alone took years and a fortune to build.
22. Sridevi is widely regarded as Hindi cinema’s first female superstar to open films on her name alone.
23. India produces more feature films per year than any other country in the world, across many languages.
24. The Filmfare Award trophy, nicknamed “the Black Lady,” has honoured Hindi film excellence since 1954.