Answer: Because the Indian cinema was born and grew up in Maharashtra, and Marathi theatre and artists gave it its first plays, studios, stars and technicians.
- Dadasaheb Phalke made the first Indian feature film, ‘Raja Harishchandra’, in 1913 in Mumbai, so the Indian film industry began in Maharashtra.
- The tradition of Marathi sangeet natak (musical theatre) supplied stories, music and trained actors to the early cinema.
- Studios such as the Prabhat Film Company in Kolhapur and Pune produced famous films, and V. Shantaram, Master Vinayak and Baburao Painter were pioneers of Indian cinema.
- Mumbai became the centre of the Hindi film industry, popularly called Bollywood, and Marathi films won national and international awards.
- The Film and Television Institute of India at Pune, the National Film Archive and many studios and theatres are located in Maharashtra, which continues to train artists for the whole country.