On the opposite end of town from the YMBA Cinema - a straight shot if you follow to the street parallel to the train tracks - is old Nyaunglebin. This section of town flourished in the heyday of train travel. The British-built system that slinks its way across Myanmar was at the forefront of the modern market economy when it opened - piecemeal, one section at a time - in the early 20th century. To this day, town centers in many secondary and tertiary cities are at their most elegant near the train station, reflecting the economic heft carried by the locomotive.
Nyaunglebin fits that mold. From the faded elegance of the train station, the town's produce hawkers begin their serpentine rows down the sidewalks, their fresh fruit and veggies displayed in sprawling piles in front of them. Behind them stand the rows of architectural treasures; ornate old buildings, largely intact, but so badly neglected that they appear as slumping, brittle shadows of their former selves.
Among this collection of vintage structures stands the Aung Mingala Cinema. Unfortunately, the exterior of the Aung Mingala was so far gone from modifications and neglect that photographing it would have been a futile effort. The interior, too, didn't have much to offer, except for a few hand painted flourishes on the proscenium, which are displayed below.
Abandoned auditorium of the Aung Mingala Cinema
A hand painted Zatt Minn Thar, or traditional Myanmar actor/dancer, flanks both sides of the wooden proscenium at the Aung Mingala Cinema
The Zatt Min Thar
A painted Ga Lone figure, enemy of dragons, serves as a simple crest above the screen.
Looking back towards the projection booth and balcony seating.
It's minutia like this that offers flickers of a forgotten past that will almost definitely be erased in the years to come.
