If you thought that Raj Kapoor's Sangam was the first movie to be shot abroad, then you are mistaken.
Indian films shot on foreign location isn't a novel factor anymore. Yash Chopra popularised Switzerland among Indians. Today, almost every other movie is shot in an exotic international location. But every trend has a beginning. Do you know the movie that was shot abroad goes way to the 1930s? Yes, if you thought that Raj Kapoor's blockbuster Sangam (1964) was the first movie to be shot overseas, then you are mistaken. Let's delve more into this.
Not Sangam and not even Ashok Kumar-starrer Naaz (1954), but Africa Mein Hind (India in Africa) was the first Indian feature film to be shot abroad. Hirendra Kumar Basu's 1940s directorial was also called as Afreeka Mein Hind. This film was the first Indian film that was shot entirely in Africa. As per a media report, In 1938, he was approached by the Indian nationalist leader Seth Govind Das (1896–1974) to make a film about Indian connections with Africa.
The reason behind making a film based on India's relationship with Africa
South Asia Monitor reported a quote of Basu narrating the idea behind the movie. "I knew Seth Govind Das-ji from earlier days. He told me that the Europeans were distorting history to suit their narratives as Indians lack proper documentation of Indian achievements abroad. He said that the movie Trader Horn [released by Hollywood in 1931] showed that the whites were the first ones to risk their lives in establishing contacts with the Africans."
Basu said that Govind Das revealed that in reality, the Indian trading community was the first to trade with the Africans. The Kathiawaris from western India would carry essential items like salt, and needles-thread along with spices. The exchange would often be not in cash but barter exchange. In return, the African forest tribes would trade diamonds, ivory, gold dust, along with other forest products." After Africa Mein Hind, Ashok Kumar-starrer Naaz was shot in Cairo, Egypt, and in London. Ten years after Naaz, Raj Kapoor shot Sangam in Switzerland.
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