Winding back in time, the owner of Anup Touring Talkies makes no attempt to hide the hint of pride in his voice though the reality for him and for other touring talkies owners in Maharashtra is not something to be proud of; his father, Ashok, was one of the earliest pioneers of the touring talkies in Maharashtra in 1963. “He bought a second-hand 1930 Japan-made projector and started screening films in villages in western Maharashtra. The response was tremendous and he eventually bought a tent,” recalls Jagdale.

The touring talkies became such a rage that people waited all year for them. They lined up not just to watch the films, but to also see the cinema reels taken on an elephant during rallies before the screening began in a tent in the evening. In the 1980s, the touring talkies took everyone by a storm. Their number grew to 2,000. Owners did roaring business in the six months they toured villages. But the owners' lives imitated the art they screened. The dénouement was rapid.

Now, each time a season wraps up, Jagdale calls the seven-odd fellow owners in western Maharashtra to see how many plan to shut shop. “At least one touring talkie owner decides to pack up each year because he can't bear the losses anymore. People ask me why I am still sticking around. I tell them that this business ensured fame, respect and prosperity for us and I will fight it out till the end,” shrugs Jagdale.

So, why are most touring talkies calling it a day? The answer is not as simple as the questions. There are many reasons for the decline of this earliest form of movie viewing in the state or country. 

1) The expenses for a whole season (from October to April next year) exceed Rs1 lakh. This includes the cost of the reel, travel and other overheads. Add to this the commercial power rates they have to pay.

2) Besides, the local governing body of each place we visit charges us an exorbitant rent for for setting up our tent. Although Marathi films are not levied any state tax, touring talkies have to pay an entertainment tax.

3) The talkies are also losing out to the now ubiquitous cable TV. The severe drought in the state over the last three years, too, have hastened the talkies' decline.

These are just a few of the reasons that are affecting the tent owners. 

Worse, no one extends a helping hand. Insurance companies, even government ones, are unwilling to insure their tents and other equipment, and their business isn’t stable enough to be eligible for bank loans.

Several owners with huge debts have written to the state, asking for a waiver in entertainment tax, some form of subsidy as well as insurance and loan from government banks. The plea, alleges Jagdale, has fallen on deaf ears. “We don’t have a strong political voice. We are told every year that our issue will be looked into, but nothing happens.”

Amit Bhandari a well known Film Critic, contends that the government owes them help. After all, they were the linchpin that held the Marathi film industry together for years. They kept it afloat till 2006. “The touring talkies gave the Marathi film industry a lot of business, even when films weren’t doing well. Even in today’s multiplex culture, where Marathi cinema gets only early morning and late night slots, these talkies help producers make large collections.”

"The Touring Talkies are in their climax. Now the movie will get over," he said.

The Touring Talkies which used to exhibit shows in a tent during 'jatras' (traditional Hindu festivals across Marathwada, Vidarbha and Western Maharashtra) are hardly appreciated now as they have just become a ritual. Each jatra used to host 30-40 shows and sometimes 10 Touring Talkies companies used to set up their tents there. But that has now become thing of the past.

The Talkies are banned from putting up shows in urban areas where theatres exists. With patrons struggling to piece together their lives in rural Maharashtra, the Touring Talkies is facing a shutdown.

The Talkies industry, which began as early as 1904 when a Parsi businessman Manik Seth showed the first ever 'silent movie' for the Britishers, is now slowly inching towards its demise.

We want to put forward a petition to the Chief Minister of The State of Maharashtra, The Cultural Minister of The State of Maharashtra and to whomsoever, to save our culture and give lives to those dying ‘Touring Tents’. “Though many a foreigners have taken note of this unique touring talkies and shot several short films on them”, says Jagdale. “There have been films in French, German, English, I myself have acted some of these films and narrated by story through them, but it is sad to know that our own government is turing a blind eye towards us.”