Bollywood: Haubitz and Zoche’s Indian Cinema Project
Each year the Indian movie-making industry produces more than 1,200 films in 24 languages. Stefanie Zoche and Sabine Haubitz went to the heart of Bollywood – Tamil Nadu – to understand, what influences modern Indian culture and how architecture of different epochs creates urban landscape.
Stefanie Zoche and Sabine Haubitz went to India in 2010 to explore its cultural landscapes and architecture in particular. They spent most of the time in Tamil Nadu and Kerala, shooting cinemas. “New Theatres” cinema became their first subject; it inspired them to hit the road. It was a continuation of their work on architectural structures and the place they take in an urban milieu.
The outside look of the buildings interested them particularly. “Facades are like faces of people. They tell you what the building is trying to convey. Theaters in India have elaborate facades, but, sometimes the interiors are quite prosaic. It is almost as if the facade is a screen that sets the stage for people to come inside and be transported to different spaces,” says Stefanie.
According to her, most of these buildings retain the style of the period they were built, while in Germany old buildings are being renovated. They felt especially nostalgic about art-deco style which was popular in the West during the 1920s. “We were pleasantly surprised to find that style still maintained in many theaters in Tamil Nadu and Kerala,” says Stefanie. “We have lost such theaters in most of Europe and the United States. We hope that our photographs will sensitize people to cherish and preserve this valuable link of their cultural heritage.”
{“img”: “/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/HZ_01.jpg”, “alt”: “Landscape Photographer of the Year 01”, “text”: ” Anna Mallai (Madurai), 2014. Photo: Haubitz + Zoche /VG Bildkunst, Bonn, 2014; courtesy: Nusser & Baumgart, Munich.”}
{“img”: “/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/HZ_02.jpg”, “alt”: “Landscape Photographer of the Year 02”, “text”: “Saravanna (Chennai), 2014. Photo: Haubitz + Zoche /VG Bildkunst, Bonn, 2014; courtesy: Nusser & Baumgart, Munich.”}
{“img”: “/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/HZ_03.jpg”, “alt”: “Landscape Photographer of the Year 03”, “text”: “Nataranj (Chennai), 2014. Photo: Haubitz + Zoche /VG Bildkunst, Bonn, 2014; courtesy: Nusser & Baumgart, Munich.”}
{“img”: “/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/HZ_04.jpg”, “alt”: “Landscape Photographer of the Year 04”, “text”: “SR Theatres (Varkala), 2014. Photo: Haubitz + Zoche /VG Bildkunst, Bonn, 2014; courtesy: Nusser & Baumgart, Munich.”}
{“img”: “/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/HZ_05.jpg”, “alt”: “Landscape Photographer of the Year 05”, “text”: “Tharangham (Karunagappally), 2014. Photo: Haubitz + Zoche /VG Bildkunst, Bonn, 2014; courtesy: Nusser & Baumgart, Munich.”}
{“img”: “/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/HZ_06.jpg”, “alt”: “Landscape Photographer of the Year 07”, “text”: “Tharangham (Karunagappally) – inside, 2014. Photo: Haubitz + Zoche /VG Bildkunst, Bonn, 2014; courtesy: Nusser & Baumgart, Munich.”}
{“img”: “/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/HZ_07.jpg”, “alt”: “Landscape Photographer of the Year 08”, “text”: “Shanti (Hyderabad), 2014. Photo: Haubitz + Zoche /VG Bildkunst, Bonn, 2014; courtesy: Nusser & Baumgart, Munich.”}
{“img”: “/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/HZ_08.jpg”, “alt”: “Landscape Photographer of the Year 08”, “text”: “Veeriah (Allepey), 2014. Photo: Haubitz + Zoche /VG Bildkunst, Bonn, 2014; courtesy: Nusser & Baumgart, Munich.”}
{“img”: “/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/HZ_09.jpg”, “alt”: “Landscape Photographer of the Year 08”, “text”: “New Theatres (Trivandrum), 2014. Photo: Haubitz + Zoche /VG Bildkunst, Bonn, 2014; courtesy: Nusser & Baumgart, Munich.”}
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