Paper short abstract:

This paper delineates the origins of the Parsi Theatre by tracing its concurrent growth with Parsi printing presses. Political contestation between orthodox and reformist factions highlight the conflicting ways in which mythological episodes were used for the invention of both religion and culture.

Paper long abstract:

This paper delineates the origins of the Parsi Theatre in Bombay in 1853 as part of a larger agenda forwarded by the Parsi reformists of Western India. It traces the concurrent growth of Parsi printing presses and the theatrical public sphere and the political contestation that took place between the Parsi orthodox and reformist factions within these two realms. The paper thus highlights the conflicting ways in which historical and mythological episodes were used for the invention of new modes of religious worship and culture in the long nineteenth century.