Cultural imaginaries of science: A brief history of Indian science-fiction cinema

This article aims to trace a history of Indian science-fiction (SF) cinema linking it with the scientific and technological milieu of the post-independence nation state. The tropes and themes that operate in Indian SF cinema across various regional film industries are juxtaposed against the sociocultural and political backdrop of the nation as well as against the historical trajectory of Indian science and technology (S&T) that manifested under the patronage of the nation state at the time of the films’ release. The article foregrounds the underlying issues and anxieties that inform SF tropes and themes in Indian cinema and grant uniqueness and legitimacy to Indian SF films. Thereby, the article hopes to establish that Indian SF cinema is not just a derivative of western genres of SF, but works by its own logic.