India Synopsis
After destroying his older brother's motorbike in retaliation for his constant bullying, 11-year-old Krishna is sent to a traveling circus to earn money to pay for the bike's repairs, but soon winds up in the streets of Bombay's poorest slums. There, he befriends the drug dealer Chillum and young prostitute Sola Saal, while trying to make enough money at a neighborhood tea stall to repay his debt to his family.
Crime + Drama in India
137 India titles in our catalog blend the Crime and Drama genres. Below: the top-rated of them (excluding Salaam Bombay! itself).
Titles With Overlapping Themes
Films and series that share thematic tags with Salaam Bombay!. Number on each card indicates how many keywords overlap.
The 1987–1989 India Window
Salaam Bombay! holds position #10 of 35 India films in the 1987–1989 window, below highlighted by audience rating.
The 1980s India Landscape
1988 was the decade’s peak output year for India — 14 titles released, including Salaam Bombay!. Bars below show how the 1980s stacked up year by year (74 total).
Position in Catalog
Released alongside 13 other India films in 1988.
The 120th India title from India we index (earliest catalogued entry: 1913).
Our India catalog contains 1,983 titles in total (1,904 films).
Audience Engagement
83 audience reviews — more than 89% of India films in our index.
Popularity sits at the 75th percentile among India films.
Reception Benchmarks
Ranked #292 of 1,983 India films indexed here (85th percentile by TMDB audience score).
Rating is +0.9 points above the India average of 6.4/10.
Among India Crime productions specifically: #46 of 283 (top 16%).
Production Details
| Primary Country | India |
|---|---|
| All Production Countries | France, India, United Kingdom |
| Original Language | Hindi |
| Spoken Languages | English, Hindi |
| Production Companies | Doordarshan, Cadrage, Forum Films, La Sept Cinéma, Mirabai Films |
| Runtime | 1h 53m |
| Release Date | August 24, 1988 |
| IMDb | tt0096028 |