Odeon Cinema is a historic

cinema Cinema may refer to: Film * Film or movie, a series of still images that create the illusion of moving image ** Film industry, the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking ** Filmmaking, the process of making a film * Movie theate ...

located in

Rawalpindi Cantonment Rawalpindi Cantonment () is a large military town located in Rawalpindi, Punjab province, Pakistan. The headquarters of the Pakistan Army, which are known as the General Headquarters (GHQ), are located in the nearby Chaklala Cantonment. It cove ...

Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

History

In 1891, the Lansdowne Trust

Rawalpindi Rawalpindi is the List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, third-largest city in the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is a commercial and industrial hub, being the list of cities in P ...

was established by Rai Bahadur Sardar Kirpal Singh and Rai Bahadur Sardar Sujan Singh, with an administrative committee including the general officer commanding, the Rawalpindi commissioner, the deputy commissioner, and trust members. The theatre was constructed in 1897 and initially showcased

silent film A silent film is a film without synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, w ...

s. The original building of the trust was converted into a cinema house by the trustee in 1912. The cinema was damaged by fire in 1946 and remained unrestored until 1949. After a fire caused by a short circuit, the cantonment management took control of the cinema, constructed a central gate, and expanded into adjacent offices. In the 1960s, the restored building was named Odeon Cinema by the then tenant. In 2008, the cinema was closed to the public by order of Station Commander Brigadier Sajjad Azam due to the leaseholder's failure to pay the annual rent. Odeon Cinema historically screened English,

Urdu Urdu (; , , ) is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in South Asia. It is the Languages of Pakistan, national language and ''lingua franca'' of Pakistan. In India, it is an Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of Indi ...

, and

Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabis, Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a ...

films.

References

{{Reflist Rawalpindi Cantonment 1897 establishments in British India Cinemas and movie theatres in Pakistan