Diwali has always meant big business for movie theatres, with film buffs looking forward to blockbusters with stellar star casts. However, this year theatre owners are looking for new ways to beat business blues.
Ever since cinemas reopened post lockdown, occupancy across halls in Salt Lake and New Town has been extremely low. The person manning the ticket counter at Nazrul Tirtha said: “Footfall is abysmal. Our smallest theatre has 350 seats, of which only five were occupied last Saturday. Before the pandemic, we used to be houseful on weekends.”
While the more tech-savvy film buffs have tuned into OTT platforms like Netflix, Amazon Prime and Disney+Hotstar, big screen fans are waiting it out till the next big release hits the theatres. “The last film I saw was in February at a multiplex in Salt Lake. I really miss going to the theatres but I know it is not safe yet. A second wave of the coronavirus is on the way and I am not confident enough to go out,” said Paulami Sarkar, a resident of FD Block.
New releases like Manoj Bajpayee’s Suraj Pe Mangal Bhari (Hindi), Switzerland (Bengali), Biskoth (Tamil) and Irandam Kuththu (Tamil) will see the light of day over the Diwali weekend. Inox (City Centre I & II) and Swabhumi will also hold a Yash Raj Film Festival over the weekend. “This year marks 50 years of Yash Raj Films so we’ve tied up with the production house to screen classics like Silsila, Kabhi Kabhie, Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge, Dil To Pagal Hain, Veer Zara, Bunty Aur Babli and Ek Tha Tiger over the Diwali weekend. Tickets to the film festival will cost Rs 50,” said sources at Inox.
As for safety measures, auditorium occupancies have been brought down to half, adjacent seats on either sides will be left vacant, floor markers will be placed at box office and food counters, PPE kit will be on sale, seats will be disinfected and sanitised after every show and guests will be encouraged to maintain a 6ft distance from other families and groups at all times. There are also contactless sanitiser dispensers at the entrance and in the lobbies along with enhanced air-filtration systems and designated bins for masks, gloves etc.
“I went to Inox to watch a film last week and there were just two other people in the auditorium. It was eerie,” said Stuti Hasan, a resident of AE Block.
“The food stalls were shut and just a handful of staff were present. But safety measures were in place so I may go back. I hope to see more releases in the coming weeks. Maybe then the crowd will slowly trickle back to the theatres.”
