The 1980s were great years for indie cinema in Bombay. The list is not meant to be exhaustive. I will keep adding more as I find them. If you know of some, please leave a comment.

Aakrosh – 1980
Dir – Govind Nihalani

Bhav ni Bhavai – 1980
Dir – Ketan Mehta

Satah Se UThata Aadmi – 1980
Dir – Mani Kaul

Note: Mani Kaul’s highly abstract take on the life and work of Hindi poet Muktibodh.

Sparsh – 1980
Dir – Sai Paranjape

Albert Pinto ko Gussa Kyon Aataa Hai – 1981
Dir – Saeed Mirza

Sadgati – 1981
Dir – Satyajit Ray

Ardh Satya – 1983
Dir – Govind Nihalani

Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron – 1983
Dir – Kundan Shah

Katha – 1983
Dir – Sai Paranjape

Mandi – 1983
Dir – Shyam Benegal

Mohan Joshi Haazir Ho – 1984
Dir – Saeed Mirza

Party – 1984
Dir – Govind Nihalani

Subah (Umbartha) – 1984
Dir – Jabbar Patel

Note: This is the Hindi version of Patel’s Marathi movie Umbartha. Both were made at the same time with the same cast.

Aaghaat – 1985
Dir – Govind Nihalani

Mirch Masala – 1985
Dir – Ketan Mehta

Sutradhaar – 1987
Chandrakant Joshi

The Perfect Murder – 1988
Zafar Hai

Note: This may strike some as an odd choice. But watch it and see for yourself! Amjad Khan speaking English the way Englishmen think Indians speak English is just too precious. “Inspector Detector”might be my favorite Khan-ism from the movie. Also a very young Stellan Skaarsgaard.

Ek Doctor ki Maut – 1990
Tapan Sinha

Disha – 1990
Dir – Sai Paranjape