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Distribution and circulation of Indian films in Singapore

2013; Routledge; Volume: 14; Issue: 4 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1080/14649373.2013.831206

1469-8447

Anjali Gera Roy,

Asian Culture and Media Studies

ABSTRACTDespite the long history of the export and exhibition of Indian films in Southeast Asia, a systematic documentation of how Hindi and Tamil films from India found their way into the region has yet to be undertaken. Theatrical exhibition of Indian films is reported to have sharply declined or ended since the late 1970s in their traditional markets in Malaya, Ceylon, British East Africa, Burma, Persian Gulf Ports, Thailand and South Vietnam. Yet films continued to be circulated through formal and informal networks such as video parlours, CD shops, television and, lately, on the internet. Although Singapore has the unique distinction of being the only Southeast Asian country, which still has a few theatres exclusively dedicated to screening Indian films, theatrical exhibition is not the only medium through which they are circulated. Based on fieldwork conducted between 2008 and 2010, this paper contrasts the formal distribution of Indian films with their informal circulation through which they “leak” into the multi-ethnic spaces of the global city. Drawing on photographs, exhibits, interviews, reports and observations, the essay focuses on television, CD shops, lending libraries and the internet through which Indian films are disseminated in Singapore.KEYWORDS: BollywoodIndian filmsHindi filmsleakageCinematograph actGreat WorldNew WorldShaw brothersJadeMediaCorpVasantham CentralSuria Notes1. The Cinematograph Films Act of 1927 (17 and 18 Geo. V) was an act of the United Kingdom Parliament designed to promote the declining British film industry, and it stipulated that British cinemas should show a quota of British films, for a duration of 10 years.2. The existence of village cinemas is confirmed on the blog of Peter Stubbs (Citation2010), who was stationed at Changi from late 1966 to mid 1968, and has fond memories of a village cinema at the Changi Village.3. Bangasawan, formerly known as Wayang Parsi, refers to a type of urban commercial theatre consisting of stories from Indian, Western, Islamic, Chinese Indonesian, and Malay sources produced during the nineteenth century that combines music, dance and theatre with extras.4. The film inspired the conceptualization of the two main spaces—Singapore by Day and Singapore by Night—for reconstructing life in Singapore in the 1960s in an exhibition entitled Singapore 1960, held in the National Museum in July 2010.5. He quotes L. Krishnan, one of the best Indian film directors recruited by the Malay film industry, to assert that “audiences preferred Hindi films to Tamil films because they were shorter, had less dialogue and more movement and spectacle, more melodious songs and more beautiful stars—their lighter skin-tones were considered more attractive” (quoted in Van der Heide Citation2002, 141).6. With tickets priced between 8–10 dollars, it is not quite clear how cinema halls such as this break even. The lady selling tickets at the counter informed me that more Chinese “mamas” and Malays may be seen in the theatre on weekdays rather than on weekends, a fact that was confirmed by the Hall's Sindhi manager. However, despite my repeated attempts to interview the manager, I was not able to obtain exact sales figures.7. During a routine medical examination in Singapore, the icebreaker my Chinese physician, a pleasant woman in her 50s, made was her interest in Indian films. Although she could neither name the films or the languages they were in, she confessed to having watched Indian films on Vasantham in the late afternoon slot and summarized some film plots to me. Similarly, a Visiting American scholar working on Hong Kong films could identify Tamil film stars through the films he watched on the same channel during his two year stay in Singapore.8. MediaCorp TV12 Central or Central was an English and Tamil language Television channel in Singapore. It was launched on 31 March 1996 replacing Premiere 12.9. The new Vasantham telecasts about 65 hours of programmes, 9 hours daily from Monday to Saturday and 11 hours on Sunday.10. As of 27 July 2010, the Vasantham Central website included the information mentioned in the text. The list of programmes includes the following: Tamil Silver Screen – Latest blockbuster Hits from the Kollywood Film Industry.Tamil Talkies – Blockbuster Hits of the 1990s from the Kollywood Film Industry.Bollywood Masti – Blockbuster Hits from the Glitz and Glamour of the Bollywood Film Industry.Vasantham Box Office – Evergreen movies of yesteryears from Kollywood.Indian Panorama – Featuring regional movies from India. Includes Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada and Punjabi movies.Cinema Express – Encore movie slot featuring the best of Kollywood movies.Vasantham Gold – Movies from the 1970s to 1980s of Kollywood Film Industry.11. “With unique concepts for unique people Zee TV Asia Pacific channel was launched in June 2004. The channel is customized with one Programme schedule, which caters to the needs of 18 countries in Asia Pacific region across 8 time zones, along with English subtitles.” (http://www.zeetelevisionasia.com/AboutUs.aspx)12. Interviews were conducted with a young and middle aged Malay couple, a mother and daughter duo and a Malay young woman at the Jade Cineplex in July 2009 and 2010.13. A 67 year old Chinese taxi driver sang a few lines from the song “dost dost na raha” (my friend is no longer my friend) from Sangam (1964) on learning that I was from India and summarized the plot of the film to me in July 2010. He recalled watching the film when he worked for the British Defence. In sharp contrast, a young Malay couple in their 20s sang the entire song “kuch kuch hota hai” from Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998) when I interviewed them in July 2009.Additional informationAuthor's biographyAnjali Gera Roy is a Professor in the Department of Humanities of Social Sciences at the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur. She has published a number of essays in literary, film and cultural studies. Her publications include a co-edited volume (with Nandi Bhatia) Partitioned Lives: Narratives of Home, Displacement and Resettlement (Delhi: Pearson Longman, 2008) and a monograph Bhangra Moves: From Ludhiana to London and Beyond (Aldershot: Ashgate, 2010). She has recently co-edited (with Chua Beng Huat) The Travels of Indian Cinema: From Bombay to LA (Delhi: OUP, 2012) and edited The Magic of Bollywood: At Home and Abroad (Delhi: Sage, 2012).