Shyam Benegal, influential director of India’s ‘parallel cinema’, dies aged 90

Shyam Benegal, a renowned Indian film-maker known for pioneering a new wave cinema movement that tackled social issues in the 1970s, has died aged 90 after suffering from chronic kidney disease.

Benegal passed away on Monday at Mumbai’s Wockhardt hospital and his cremation took place on Tuesday, the Press Trust of India news agency reported, quoting his daughter Piya. “Benegal had been suffering from chronic kidney disease for several years but it had gotten very bad. That’s the reason for his death,” Piya said.

Many paid tribute to the film-maker on social media platform X. “Deeply saddened by the passing of Shyam Benegal, whose storytelling had a profound impact on Indian cinema. His works will continue to be admired by people from different walks of life,” India’s prime minister Narendra Modi tweeted.

Benegal was a mentor to major Indian actors including Shabana Azmi, Smita Patil, Naseeruddin Shah, and Om Puri, who went on to make their mark in Bollywood’s popular cinema. “I have lost my foster father, a man to whom I owe more than I can say,” posted Shah. “Shyam Benegal was not just a legend; he was a visionary who redefined storytelling and inspired generations,” said actor Manoj Bajpayee.

Benegal emerged in the 1970s with a series of films that challenged mainstream Bollywood. Ankur (1974), Nishant (1975), Manthan (1976), and Bhumika (1977) were part of the “parallel cinema” movement which dealt with the social realities of a poor nation. Ankur explored the feudal divide in India, while Manthan was based on the story of the country’s cooperative dairy milk movement.

In the 1980s Benegal became widely known for Bharat Ek Khoj, a landmark 53-episode television series based on the book Discovery of India, written by India’s first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru, which chronicled the country’s troubled passage from ancient times to modernity. He also directed a 2023 biopic about Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who led Bangladesh’s struggle against Pakistan in the 1970s.

Benegal was born in December 1934 in Hyderabad in southern India, earning an economics degree from Hyderabad’s Osmania University and establishing the Hyderabad Film Society. He also worked in advertising, where he directed more than 900 sponsored documentaries and advertising films.

Benegal is survived by his wife Nira and daughter Piya.