From Bombay to Singapore: Parsi theatre companies and early film exhibitions

Abstract

Many early film exhibitors and travelling showmen entered Southeast Asia through India in the 1890s and 1900s. This article examines the role of Indian entrepreneurs and theatre proprietors in arranging early film exhibitions in colonial Malaya, tracing their distribution routes, and analyzing the strategies they employed to engage local audiences. Focusing on three case studies - Khurshed Balivala and the Victoria Parsi Theatrical Company, Jamshedji Framji Madan and the Parsi Elphinstone Theatrical Company, and Abdulally Esoofally and his Bioscope exhibitions - the article explores the contributions of Parsi theatre troupes and Indian film exhibitors to the early film landscape in Singapore and colonial Malaya. By highlighting overlooked aspects of early cinema in the region, it demonstrates how formal and informal distribution networks were established and argues that film exhibitors from India played a significant role in shaping the reception and meaning of cinema for local audiences in colonial Malaya.