My Friend from India (1927): cast, story & where to watch

Released in 1927, My Friend from India is a comedy and romance film directed by E. Mason Hopper, running about 60 minutes.

What it’s about. Wealthy young man about town, Tommy Valentine (Franklin Pangborn) comes to the aid of Barbara Smith (Elinor Fair). But before he can learn anything about Barbara, her social climbing Aunt Bedelia (Ethel Wales), whisks her away. On a mission to "find the girl," Tommy looks for her everywhere. He unknowingly befriends her brother Charlie, who invites him to spend the evening in Smith's palatial home. The next morn Aunt Bedelia finds Tommy with his head wrapped in a towel and assumes him to be the Hindu prince that Charlie promised to bring to her society party. Introduced to all as a Prince from Calcutta, Tommy is forced to see the charade through. But the local con-man Charlie had previously arranged to appear at the party as the Prince shows up as well. At least Tommy is able to reconnect with Barbara, that is until the police show up with orders to arrest all fake fakirs.

Who’s in it. My Friend from India stars Franklin Pangborn as William / Tommy Valentine, Elinor Fair as Bernice / Barbara, Ben Hendricks Jr. as Charles / Charlie and Ethel Wales as Arabella Mott / Bedelia Smith, among others.

How it landed. With an audience score of 5.0/10, My Friend from India has proved divisive with audiences.

Where to watch. Streaming options change often. See the full, country-by-country breakdown on our where to watch My Friend from India page.

If you liked it. Fans of My Friend from India tend to enjoy Forrest Gump, Parasite, Life Is Beautiful and Fight Club.