New Cinema and new media: Hopes for resurrection

This article conducts empirical research on the use of new media by the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC). It critically engages with its DVD campaign launched under the Cinemas of India (COI) label in 2012. This is done with a larger view to assess the after-life of New Cinema and map the creation of an alternative archive. The digitally restored NFDC films constitute valuable empirical tools for film studies; the DVDs have made the text 'attainable' in the hands of a film scholar. However, the article does not seek to textually analyse the content of the films restored, nor is it a technical study of DVDs, instead the DVDs are assessed on their archival potential to study New Cinema - i.e., (Hindi) films that were made and supported by the Corporation during the 1970s to early 1990s. In the end, the article tries to hint towards the challenges of doing film history in a digital age.