Indian Army Special Newsreel (1940)

Indian title and commentary. c 1940 Various shots of the Indian army. They stand to attention and are inspected by an officer. Various shots of soldiers on motorbikes in a desert setting. It is some kind of display. M/S of a column of army motorcycle messengers riding down a road in the desert landscape. These soldiers are followed by men in army vehicles. Various shots of the army on the march in a desert landscape. L/S of men climbing over barbed wire and running with rifles. Could be training or real manoeuvres. Soldiers in dugouts. Tanks. Indian music throughout the preceding section. High angle shot of mounted soldier’s horses wearing blankets. Many horses are gathered in a courtyard. Panning shot. M/S of horses being led towards the camera. Sequence showing horses being led off a ship down a covered walkway. English Officers watch the operation. One horse doesn’t want to leave the ship and has to be pulled off. More horses are led off. Various shots of the horses and their riders. Panning shot of soldiers attending to their uniforms. Gendarme (?) in a motorcycle sidecar passes the camera. Indian soldiers walk behind leading horses. Great many horses are led through a street - could be France. Various shots of soldiers and horses. C/U of oats being weighed out for the horses. English Officer feeds one of the horses. Men carry saddles on their heads towards the horses. Horses in tack are seen. Men climb on to carts attached to the horses and sit up very straight. The horse driven carts move out of camp - various shots of these and horseback riders on the move. Other horses are led by soldiers. Soldiers on parade - they stand to attention and are ready for inspection. The Duke of Devonshire and Mr Emery (?) inspect the troops. Various shots of the inspection. M/S of Muslim soldiers bowing down to prayer. Shots of a tent being erected. Interior of the tent - men play cards. Horses without tack or blankets are led through a field. Various shots of the men at rest. One winds his turban, another has his hair cut. C/U of the barber teasing another man about his hair. Soldiers lark around with the horses. Shot of them being groomed. Various shots of the soldiers and their horses in camp. King George VI and Queen Elizabeth (later Queen Mother) pay a visit to the army. Various shots of the royal visitors being shown around the camp and inspecting the troops. Good C/Us of some of the men. King inspects long lines of troops. The soldiers do an Indian version of “three cheers“ as the royals leave by car. Note: if researchers have any more information about this film please let us know. We have no accompanying paperwork. FILM ID: A VIDEO FROM BRITISH PATHÉ. EXPLORE OUR ONLINE CHANNEL, BRITISH PATHÉ TV. IT’S FULL OF GREAT DOCUMENTARIES, FASCINATING INTERVIEWS, AND CLASSIC MOVIES. FOR LICENSING ENQUIRIES VISIT British Pathé also represents the Reuters historical collection, which includes more than 136,000 items from the news agencies Gaumont Graphic (1910-1932), Empire News Bulletin (1926-1930), British Paramount (1931-1957), and Gaumont British (1934-1959), as well as Visnews content from 1957 to the end of 1984. All footage can be viewed on the British Pathé website.