Hyderabad, May 18 -- For more than a century, Indians have loved and celebrated cinema like no other country in the world. From the glamour of Bollywood to the massive success of Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada and Marathi films, Indian cinema has grown into a global entertainment powerhouse with fans across continents.

But do you know May 18 is one of the most important dates in Indian cinema history?

On this day in 1912, India's first-ever feature film, Shree Pundalik, was released. In 2026, the iconic silent film completes 114 years, marking a historic milestone in the journey of Indian movies.

Directed by Dadasaheb Torne, also known as Ramchandra Gopal Torne, Shree Pundalik was a silent Marathi film based on the life of Hindu sai...