Sanskrit Cinema is a part of Indian cinema. Only 15 films have been made in Sanskrit have been made so far since 1983. There is no separate industry set for Sanskrit films.

History

The first Sanskrit film ever made was Adi Shankaracharya in 1983 by

G.V. Iyer Ganapathi Venkataramana Iyer (3 September 1917 – 21 December 2003) was a well-known Indian film director and actor. He was nicknamed "Kannada Bheeshma", and was the only person who made films in Sanskrit. His film ''Adi Shankaracharya'' (1983 ...

. At the

31st National Film Awards The 31st National Film Awards, presented by Directorate of Film Festivals, the organisation set up by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, India to felicitate the best of Indian Cinema released in the year 1983. Ceremony took place in Jun ...

, it won four awards, including Best Film,

Best Screenplay Best or The Best may refer to: People * Best (surname), people with the surname Best * Best (footballer, born 1968), retired Portuguese footballer Companies and organizations * Best & Co., an 1879–1971 clothing chain * Best Lock Corporatio ...

Best Cinematography This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...

and Best Audiography. The second film was

Bhagavad Gita The Bhagavad Gita (; sa, श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता, lit=The Song by God, translit=śrīmadbhagavadgītā;), often referred to as the Gita (), is a 700- verse Hindu scripture that is part of the epic ''Mahabharata'' (c ...

in 1992, again by G.V. Iyer. The film won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film at the 40th National awards for 1992. The next film made was in 2015, after a gap of 22 years. From 2015 to 2017, 4 Sanskrit films were made in Kerala, India. Priyamanasam was the 3rd Sanskrit film and the first Sanskrit film from Kerala. The film won the award for 'Best Feature film in Sanskrit' at the 63rd National awards. The film was screened at the 46th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa in 2015.

Ishti An ishti in Hinduism is a series of oblations to different deities A deity or god is a supernatural being who is considered divine or sacred. The ''Oxford Dictionary of English'' defines deity as a god or goddess, or anything revered as divin ...

made in 2016 was the first Sanskrit film based on a social issue. The film was screened at the 47th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa in 2016, in the panorama section. Suryakantha is the fifth Sanskrit film and the third one made in Kerala. It is the first Sanskrit film on contemporary life. The film won 'Special Jury award' in Kerala Film Critics Associations awards, 2017. Anurakthi is the first Sanskrit 3D film with a song in the film picturised in 3D format. That also made Anurakthi the first Sanskrit film to have a song in it. The film was screened at the 48th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa in 2017. Pratikriti is the first Commercial film in Sanskrit. This is written and directed by Dr. Nidheesh Gopi.

Punyakoti ''Punyakoti'' (), also released as ''A Truthful Mother'', is a 2020 Indian Sanskrit-language animated film directed by Ravishankar Venkateswaran. It is the first animated film in Sanskrit. ''Punyakoti'' is an adaptation of a picture book for c ...

is the first animated film in Sanskrit.

Madhurasmitham ''Madhurasmitham'' is a 2021 children's film. It is a social film that tells the story of the excellence of government schools and the students who study there. It was the first film directed by Sureshgayathri. Madhurasmitham is the first Sansk ...

World's First children's Sanskrit film. Directed by sureshgayathri 2019.

won the Travancore International Award for Best Film. ''Namo'' screened at IFFI in 2021 and its story resolve around friendship between

Sudama Sudama (), also known as Kuchela (), is a childhood friend of the Hindu deity Krishna. The story of his visit to Dvaraka to meet his friend is featured in the Bhagavata Purana. In their legend, Sudama and Krishna study together as children a ...

and Sri Krishna.

List of Sanskrit films

References

{{World cinema Cinema of Karnataka Cinema of Kerala Cinema by language of India Mass media in Sanskrit Sanskrit revival