Bihar has an important role in the film world. Many Bihari artists have been successful in creating their own identity in Bollywood. There is no dearth of film lovers in Bihar. There was no shortage of cinema halls in Bihar to show films, but times changed and thinking about watching films changed. The single screen theater on which a crowd of people used to gather as soon as the film was shown. Now it gradually closed due to the indifference of the audience. Interestingly, for the first time in Bihar, movie watching did not start in any cinema hall. Actually this was a place where after going there people understood what cinema is? After this, the foundation of the first cinema hall in then undivided Bihar was laid.
There were a large number of halls in the capital
There used to be a single screen theater in the capital. There used to be cinema halls named Apsara, Mona, Uma, Elphinstone, Veena, Ashok, Rupak, Pearl, Chanakya, Regent and Alpana. Apart from this, there were Amrapali and Diana cinema halls in Danapur and two cinema halls in Patna City area. People used to flock to all these cinema halls as soon as the film was released. According to cinema lovers, the sound of Regent Cinema Hall and the screen of Mona Cinema Hall were considered the most spectacular.
First start of showing the film
Cinema halls came into existence in Bihar in the 1930s. However, the interesting thing is that the cinema hall in Bihar was not started from any hall but from a place about which people know but their number can be counted on fingers. In fact, the then undivided Bihar also included the states of Orissa and Bengal along with Bihar. There was an era of silent films in the country at that time. Movies used to be a subject of curiosity among the people.
Glory is registered in the name of Lady Stephenson Hall
Suman says that another interesting fact is that Lady Stephenson Hall, currently located near the old museum in the capital, is the place where cinema halls were first started in Bihar. The one who started it was none other than his grandfather Kailash Bihari Sinha. When Lady Stephenson Hall started showing cinema, elaborate arrangements were made. Cinema showing of silent films was started in this hall. Along with this, music conferences were also organized. When his grandfather realized that this work was right and it could be taken forward. Then he bought a land and the foundation of building Regent Cinema Hall was laid on it.
People used to come from Kolkata
Suman says, there were stages and curtains in this Place of Variety. When it was time to show the film, curtains were drawn. Besides, there used to be green rooms on both sides. At that time people used to come from Kolkata and many other cities and many cultural programs used to take place. There used to be silent films then. When films were available to be shown, the films were shown and when films were not available, these programs were organised.
Place of Variety changed to Regent
On the old era of cinema, Suman says, Palace’s Variety is the oldest cinema hall of undivided Bihar. Its name was later changed to Regent Cinema. The construction of this cinema hall started in 1928 and was completed in 1929 and it was inaugurated in the same year.
The landlord had built the Palace of Variety
Suman tells, the one who made it was none other than his grandfather Kailash Bihari Sinha. He was a landlord of his time. Kailash Bihari Sinha’s ancestors, originally from Rajasthan, had settled in Bariyarpur near Muzaffarpur in Bihar. After this he again came and settled in Patna. Suman says, when this cinema hall was completed, at that time there used to be cinema halls only at a few places in the country. At the time of the beginning of this cinema hall, Bengal, Bihar, Orissa and Assam were one. This was the first cinema hall in all these states.
then even a one way ticket
Suman says, Place of Variety i.e. Regent had a capacity of 750 spectators at that time. In 2011, when Result Cinema Hall was renovated and after that when it was opened for the audience, there used to be 1152 sting. He says, when Regent Cinema Hall was opened in 1929, its ticket rates used to be in several categories. At that time the most expensive ticket used to be ten annas. After this there used to be six anna, two anna and then one anna tickets. All the films made in that period were shown in Regent. Suman tells that at that time films were made in English and came from Britain. People used to look at him. People liked Charlie Chaplin’s films very much. He says, at that time films like Harishchandra Taramati, Ram Rajya and Alam Ara were also released in Patna.
The reel used to come from Mumbai
Suman says, earlier the reels of films were packed in boxes and sent to the cinema halls in Mumbai. It used to be in two parts. At that time films of 20 or 22 reels were also made. There were 10 reels in a box and each reel had two parts. If a film is of 22 reels then it used to have 11 parts.
Place of Bharbharaity was in vogue
Telling another interesting thing, Suman says, there is another interesting incident related to Place of Variety. He says, then when people used to ask a rickshaw puller or anyone else about the Place of Variety, people used to call it the Place of Bharbharayati. Common people could not even pronounce Place of Variety, then most of the people used to call it Place of Bharbharaithi.
Elphinstone was made from a person from Kolkata
After Regent Cinema, Elphinstone is the second oldest cinema hall of undivided Bihar. The builders of this cinema hall were also not from Bihar. Suman tells, Elphinstone Cinema Hall was built by a person named Narendra from then Calcutta. In those days, he had a chain of cinema halls across the country. Earlier the name of this cinema hall was Narendra Theatre. Elphinstone Cinema Hall was completed in 1933. When Narendra ji started leaving from Patna, he sold it to another person. After this that person also sold it to a third person. At present the owner of this cinema hall is the third buyer.
All cinema halls after these two are
Renowned film critic and National Award winner Vinod Anupam says, there was no dearth of cinema appreciators in Bihar before and there is no dearth even today. The history of cinema halls in Bihar is also years old. Only after these two cinema halls, other cinema halls were built in Patna. Regent was built in 1929 while Elphinstone was built in 1933. After this, probably no other cinema halls were built in the 1940s and 1950s. In the 1960s, among the cinema halls built in Patna, there were halls like Veena, Ashok, while in the 1970s, there were Vaishali, Mona and Chanakya. All other cinema halls were built only after these. Presently Mona, Elphinstone have been converted into multiple plexes, while Regent Single is also running continuously as a single theater with modern facilities. Mostly Bhojpuri films are shown in Veena Cinema Hall. Whereas other cinema halls could not bear the change of multiplex and were closed.
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