 "'Raja Harishchandra' was the first movie that gave rise to the Indian film industry popularly known as Bollywood. Representational image/X")
With OTT platforms and Bollywood churning out movies one after the other, it may be hard to imagine a time when movies were not part of the scene. It was on May 3, 1913, that the first full-length Indian feature film, Raja Harishchandra, was released. The film marked the birth of Indian cinema.
If you are a history geek who loves to learn about important events from the past, Firstpost Explainers’ ongoing series, History Today will be your one-stop destination to explore key events.
On this day in 2007, Madeleine McCann vanished from Portugal’s Praia da Luz. This went on to become one of the most widely reported missing child cases in modern history.
Here is all that has happened on this day across the world.
Release of Raja Harishchandra
May 3, 1913, changed the way Indians consumed content with the release of Raja Harishchandra, the first silent movie. This was the first movie that gave rise to the Indian film industry. Directed and produced by Dadasaheb Phalke , the silent film was inspired by Western filmmaking after watching The Life of Christ.
Despite scepticism and financial difficulties, Phalke wrote, directed, produced and even handled the cinematography for the movie. The film was based on the legendary tale of King Harishchandra, known for his unwavering honesty and integrity.
As acting was not considered respectable for women at the time, all roles were played by men. This included even the female roles. Dattatraya Damodar Dabke portrayed the titular king, while male stage actor Anna Salunke played Queen Taramati. The movie was shot using a single camera and consisted of four reels, running approximately 40 minutes.
Raja Harishchandra premiered at Bombay’s Coronation Cinema and received an enthusiastic response from audiences. Though silent and monochrome, its impact was profound. It laid the foundation for narrative Indian cinema and demonstrated film’s potential as a medium for storytelling, entertainment and cultural preservation.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsMadeleine McCann went missing in Portugal
On this day in 2007, three-year-old Madeleine McCann vanished from a holiday apartment in the resort town of Praia da Luz, Portugal, sparking what would become one of the most widely reported missing child cases in modern history.
British national Madeleine McCann was on holiday with her parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, and her younger twin siblings. On the evening of May 3, as the children slept in their ground-floor apartment at the Ocean Club resort, the parents were dining with acquaintances at a nearby establishment, routinely checking on their children. Around 10:00 pm, Kate McCann found Madeleine missing from her bed. The presence of an open small window quickly led to the presumption of an abduction.
Portuguese police launched an investigation that drew global attention and media coverage. The search involved local authorities, international police, volunteers, and even private detectives. Despite intense efforts, no definitive evidence emerged regarding Madeleine’s whereabouts.
The case took several controversial turns. In September 2007, Portuguese police named Kate and Gerry McCann as formal suspects (arguidos), a move widely criticised. That status was lifted in 2008 due to a lack of evidence. The original Portuguese investigation was closed in 2008 but later reopened in 2013. That same year, Scotland Yard launched its own inquiry, codenamed Operation Grange.
Over the years, thousands of leads and sightings were investigated. In 2020, German authorities announced a new suspect, a man named Christian Brückner, a convicted sex offender who had lived in the Algarve region. He has not been formally charged in connection with Madeleine’s disappearance. Despite ongoing investigations, Madeleine McCann remains missing.
This Day, That Year
The Kentucky Derby, the most prestigious American horse race, was televised nationally in the United States for the first time on this day in 1952.
In 1937, Margaret Mitchell won a Pulitzer Prize for her enormously popular novel Gone with the Wind.
European explorer Christopher Columbus encountered the island of Jamaica which he named Santiago on this day in 1494.