https://en.bharatpedia.org/w/index.php?action=history&feed=atom&title=Jos_TheatreJos Theatre - Revision history2026-10-15T09:17:06ZRevision history for this page on the wikiMediaWiki 1.43.6https://en.bharatpedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jos_Theatre&diff=506562&oldid=prevRobertSwale: creating new data2026-03-24T15:45:40Z<p>creating new data</p>
<p><b>New page</b></p><div>{{Short description|First permanent movie theatre in Kerala}}<br />
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2018}}<br />
{{Use Indian English|date=November 2018}}<br />
{{Infobox venue<br />
| name = Jose Theater <br />
| native_name = <br />
| native_name_lang = <br />
| image =<br />
| image_size = 300px<br />
| image_alt = <br />
| caption = <br />
| image_map = <br />
| map_caption = <br />
| pushpin_map = <br />
| pushpin_map_caption= <br />
| address = [[Swaraj Round]], [[Thrissur]]<br />
| city = [[Thrissur]]<br />
| country = India<br />
| designation = <br />
| architect = <br />
| owner = [[Jose Kattookkaran]]<br />
| tenant = <br />
| operator = <br />
| capacity = <br />
| type = <br />
| opened = 1930<br />
| reopened = <br />
| years_active = <br />
| rebuilt = <br />
| coordinates = {{coord|10.522379|N|76.215527|E|display=title}}<br />
| closed = <br />
| demolished = <br />
| other_names = ''Jose Electrical Bioscope''<br />
| production = <br />
| current_use = <br />
| website = <br />
}}<br />
<br />
'''Jos Theatre''' is the first permanent movie theatre in [[Kerala]], India. Located in [[Swaraj Round]] in [[Thrissur]] city, it was built by [[Kattukkaran Varunny Joseph]], the first man to screen the film in Kerala. The movie theatre was earlier known as ''Jose Electrical Bioscope''. It was Kerala's first permanent brick‑and‑mortar cinema hall and remains in continuous operation under the ownership of its founder's descendants.<br />
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== History ==<br />
Kattukkaran Varunny Joseph was known as the "Father of Malayalam Cinema Exhibitors". He was the first to introduced film projection to [[Kerala]] in 1913 with his battery‑powered "Jose Electrical Bioscope" at [[Ollur]], [[Thrissur]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Venkiteswaran |first=C.S. |date=2013-11-21 |title=Lights, camera, cinema |url=https://www.thehindu.com/features/cinema/lights-camera-cinema/article5374952.ece |access-date=2025-07-07 |work=The Hindu |language=en-IN |issn=0971-751X}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=2020-07-19 |title=Kerala's first film projector to become a museum piece in city |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/thiruvananthapuram/keralas-first-film-projector-to-become-a-museum-piece-in-city/articleshow/77042880.cms |access-date=2025-07-07 |work=The Times of India |issn=0971-8257}}</ref> Building on that pioneering venture, he established '''Jose Theatre''' on Thrissur's [[Swaraj Round, Thrissur|Swaraj Round]] in 1930. It was the state's first permanent brick‑and‑mortar cinema hall. It is being operated by Joseph's descendants, the theater weathered the transition from silent films to talkies, multiple ownership changes and successive renovations continuously screening regional and national releases for over nine decades.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ltd |first=Barco Electronic Systems Pvt |title=Sapna Theatre in Thrissur Embraces Auro 11.1 Barco's Immersive Sound |url=https://www.prnewswire.com/in/news-releases/sapna-theatre-in-thrissur-embraces-auro-111-barcos-immersive-sound-287889601.html |access-date=2025-07-07 |website=www.prnewswire.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web<br />
|url=http://cityjournal.in/hundred-years-of-filial-indifference/<br />
|title=Hundred years of filial indifferenc<br />
|publisher=City Journal<br />
|accessdate=2013-10-01<br />
|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131004213608/http://cityjournal.in/hundred-years-of-filial-indifference/<br />
|archive-date=4 October 2013<br />
|url-status=dead<br />
}}</ref><ref>{{cite web<br />
|url=http://www.thehindu.com/features/cinema/a-true-adventurer/article5179374.ece<br />
|title=A true adventurer <br />
|publisher=The Hindu <br />
|accessdate=2013-10-01}}</ref><br />
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== Significance ==<br />
As Kerala's inaugural dedicated movie house, Jose Theatre institutionalized regular film exhibition, by transforming cinema from a transient novelty into a cornerstone of public entertainment in Thrissur. It provided [[Malayalam cinema|Malayalam filmmakers]] with a reliable exhibition platform and nurtured communal viewing traditions that fostered the state's vibrant film culture. Today, Jose Theatre stands as a living monument to early Indian cinema's exhibition history and to the entrepreneurial vision of its founder, whose touring bioscopes and permanent hall laid the groundwork for Kerala's cinematic boom.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2013-09-29 |title=A true adventurer |url=https://www.thehindu.com/features/cinema/a-true-adventurer/article5179374.ece |access-date=2025-07-07 |work=The Hindu |language=en-IN |issn=0971-751X}}</ref><br />
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==References==<br />
{{reflist}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Malayalam cinema]]<br />
[[Category:Theatres completed in 1936]]<br />
[[Category:Tourist attractions in Thrissur]]<br />
[[Category:Buildings and structures in Thrissur]]<br />
[[Category:20th-century architecture in India]]</div>RobertSwale