Director: Dhundiraj Govind Phalke; Writer: Dhundiraj Govind Phalke, V.H. Palnitkar; Cinematographer: Anna Salunke; Cast: Bhaurao Datar, Bachu Pawar, Gangaram Nhavi, Yamuna Gole
Duration: 00:05:43; Aspect Ratio: 1.333:1; Hue: 268.226; Saturation: 0.007; Lightness: 0.250; Volume: 0.039; Cuts per Minute: 15.203
Summary: Drawn from the Vishnu Purana, this legend tells of Prahlad (Gangaram), the son of the demon tyrant Hiranyakashapu (Bachu). Prahlad disobeys his father by worshipping the latter's hated enemy, Vishnu (Datar). He undergoes tortures, including being burnt in oil, trampled beneath an elephant and poisoning, until, finally, Vishnu appears from a pillar in his Narasimha guise to overwhelm the demon, Available footage: 519 ft.
Suresh Chabria writes: 'Drawn from one of the great treasuries of Hindu myths, the Bhagavata Purana, Bhakta Prahlad tells the story of Prahlad’s devotion to God Vishnu, who is the hated enemy of his father␣the arrogant demon-king, Hiranyakashipu. Chanting ‘Hari! Hari!’ (another name of reference for Vishnu) Prahlad remains miraculously unharmed by a series of tortures which includes being plunged in a cauldron of boiling oil, trampled by an elephant and poisoned at the hands of his own mother. In the magnificent climax Vishnu emerges from a pillar in his Narasimha avatar as man-lion to vanquish the demon. With a rocking camera and superimposed streaks of lightning shooting out as the pillar bursts open to reveal the wrathful Narasimha, this is perhaps Phalke’s most brilliantly executed and elaborate special effects sequence. Initially, Gangaram Nhavi’s representation of the adolescent Prahlad could seem somewhat comical because of his constant clapping and monotonous chanting of Vishnu’s name. But subsequently it assumes a powerful spiritual charge and trance-like communion with the divine', From Suresh Chabria ed. Light of Asia: Indian Silent Cinema 1912-1934, New Dewlhi: Niyogi Books/Pune: national Film Archive of India, 2013, pg 44-45.
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