MUMBAI: Renowned film historian and film scholar BD Garga passed away on Monday at the age of 86 after a brief illness in Goa. He is survived by his wife and daughter.

Known as one of India‘s most eminent film scholars, Garga compiled the first film anthology on the occasion of the golden jubilee of Indian cinema in 1963. He was honoured by the Film Federation of India (FFI) for his contribution to the growth of cinema in the country.

Among his books are So Many Cinemas: The Motion Picture in India and The Art of Cinema: An Insider‘s Journey through Fifty Years of Film History. His book From Raj to Swaraj: The Non-fiction Film in India won the National Award for the Best Book on Cinema for 2009 while his latest book Pictorial History of Indian Silent Cinema was due to be published this year.

In 1996, Garga received the first V. Shantaram Award for Lifetime Achievement at the Mumbai International Film Festival.

Garga had written, directed and produced over 50 documentary films in his lifetime. He was also a founding member of the National Film Archive, Pune.