Satyawadi Raja Harishchandra - Production

Production

After the release of first Indian feature film Raja Harishchandra by Dadasaheb Phalke in 1913, no other production attempts were made in Indian cinema for the next four years. Phalke, however, made several short films and documentaries like Scenes of the River Godavari and Ahmadabad Congress, and also the feature film Mohini Bhasmasur in 1913 and Satyavan Savitri in 1914. J. F. Madan, who had formed two production companies in the beginning of 1900s, decided to make a film. His first company, Elphinstone Bioscope, was a leading producer and distributor of foreign films in permanent and travelling cinema in India, whereas his second company, Madan Theaters Limited, was mainly involved in exhibition, distribution and production of Indian films during the silent era of film industry. Madan Theaters Limited eventually became India's largest film production-distribution-exhibition company and was also a noted importer of American films after World War I.

The film was inspired by a Urdu language drama, Harishchandra (written by Narain Prasad Betab). It was advertised as a "Photographed Play" with male lead Hormusji Tantra as "the 'Irving' of the Indian stage" and female lead Savaria, as "the most beautiful and emotional star". The film also starred Italian artists Signor and Signora Manelli. Other members of the film were recruited from Baliwala Victoria Theatrical Company, a Parsi theater company based in Mumbai. The film was released on 24 March 1917 at New Tent Maidan, Calcutta. The film's running time was two hours. It was the longest Indian feature film made till 1931. The film had 5 reels having length of 7000 feet and was a 35 mm film. Pt. Nityabodha Bidyaratna wrote the screen play. The film was produced by J. F. Madan's Elphinstone Bioscope and was distributed by his another company, Madan Theaters Limited.