The contributions of Sign Language to creativity in the world of cinema are remarkable. In Unusualverse you can find a lot of movies and TV series about it (here) but they are always occidental productions. Here you will find some Indian films in which sign language spins their stories.
It is important to know that most of these Indian productions are starring hearing actors and actresses rather than Deaf people. Looking at the growing involvement of Deaf professionals in cinema, it is to be hoped that this trend will change in the future of Indian film production.
Below are five of the best rated Indian films by IMDB users, sorted by year of production.
Koshish (1972)
It has the privilege of being one of the first Indian films to feature Sign Language. At the time it received a good review and has remained with a high score over the years but today, probably, the best is the opening credit titles with hands spelling words in the Indian fingerspelling.
Black (2005)
About a deafblind woman, this film has won more than 50 festival awards and is among the 50 best rated Indian films of all time at IMDB (along with the previous one).
Iqbal (2005)
This film tells the story of a Deaf child obsessed with cricket in a remote Indian village as he aspires to overcome the difficulties of becoming a professional cricketer and fulfilling his dream of playing for the Indian national cricket team.
Barfi! (2012)
Considered one of the cinematographic "jewels" of India, this film is set in the 1970s, Murphy "Barfi", a deaf Nepalese child and his relationships with two women, Shruti and Jhilmil, the latter autistic.
Bajrangi Bhaijaan (2015)
The film was a blockbuster, won 25 awards and was inspired by the true story of a Deaf girl, Geeta, who was trapped for more than a decade in Pakistan. When she was found in Pakistan, she was ten years old and had no memory of where she came from. The film's success initiated a crusade by the Indian government to bring Geeta back to her country (you can see the full story here).
