Appreciating Melodrama: Theory and Practice in Indian Cinema and Television seeks to identify and appreciate the continual influence of the ancient Sanskrit drama treatise, the Natyashastra, and its theory of aesthetics, the rasa theory, on the unique narrative attributes of Indian cinema.
This volume of work critically engages with a representative sample of landmark films from 100 years of Indian film history across genres, categories, regions and languages. This is the first time a case study-based rigorous academic review of popular Indian cinema is done using the Indian aesthetic appreciation theory of rasa (affect/emotion). It proposes a theoretical model for film appreciation, especially for content made in the melodramatic genre, and challenges existing First World/Euro-American film criticism canons and notions that privilege cinematic 'realism' over other narrative forms, which will generate passionate debates for and against its propositions in future studies and research on films.
This is a valuable academic reference book for students of film and theatre, world cinema and Indian cinema studies, South Asian studies and culture, Indology and the 'Sociology of Cinema' studies. It is a must-have reference text in the curriculum of both practical-oriented acting schools, as well as courses and modules focusing on a theoretical study of cinema, such as film criticism and appreciation, and the history of movies and performance studies.

Piyush Roy is an Indian National Film Award winning critic-columnist, and an international author, curator, filmmaker and professor in film, media and aesthetics studies. Having taught at higher education institutions in the UK and India (like Indian Institute of Mass Communication Dhenkanal, Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad, The Kohima Institute, MIDAS Pune, Jain University Bengaluru and The University of Edinburgh, Scotland), he is presently the Founding Dean and Professor at the School of Liberal Arts and Sciences, RV University, Bengaluru.

Introduction: Bharata to Bollywood
Section One
Chapter 1: A Tale about Nine Sentiments: Portraying Bhava and Rasa on Film
Chapter 2: Rasa and Phalke: Tracing Natyashastra Influences in the Filmmaking of the Premier Pioneer of Indian Cinema
Chapter 3: Rasa in Review: Exploring Natyashastra Legacies in the Birth of Odia Cinema
Section Two
Chapter 4: Rasa in Adaptation: Analysing the Emotive Ingredients of a Masala Film
Chapter 5: Rasa in Characterisation: Reviewing Gender and Character Stereotypes as Rasa Achievements in Mayabazar and Madam X
Chapter 6: Rasa in Performance: Draupadi's Insult and a Plea for Vengeance in Nine Emotions
Conclusion