Maharashtra Extended Their Lockdown Till November 30; Dark Times For Theatre

City exhibitors had livid itself after government extends cinema shutdown till Nov 30; the fate of upcoming films uncertain whilst other states demand new releases.

On Thursday, this week the Maharashtra government extended the lock down within the state till November 30 with no further relaxations. For exhibitors within the state who have lost crores of rupees within the eight months of theater shutdown, the move spells doom as Diwali is that the foremost profitable period for the business. Manoj Desai, executive of G7 multiplex in Bandra, says, "Our business shoots up during this era, but it is a black Diwali this year. [On paper], I even have eight theatres standing, but actually, we are broke."

Also, mentioning the Akshaye Rathi, who owns cinemas in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Maharashtra, notes that the exhibition and distribution sector had earned R250 crore last Diwali due to the famous, three festival releases — Housefull 4, Saand Ki Aankh and Made in China. As another bleak month awaits him this year, he has no option but to abandoning of his staff. Rathi also indicates that the discrimination against movie halls is unfair as he asks, "Are cinemas the sole place where the virus spreads? Everything else had reopened — be it metros, salons, and even trains."

With trade and filmmakers optimistic that the doors of cinemas would be thrown open from All Saints' Day, it had been heard that Suraj Pe Mangal Bhari — besides its digital premiere — would able to hit screens over the Diwali weekend. Similarly, Kiara Advani's Indoo Ki Jawani was slated for a late November release. As the fortune of those two films hangs within the balance, Rathi adds, "The trailer of Suraj Pe Mangal Bhari doesn't mention anything about the film releasing in cinemas. So, there is no [clarity]."

The decision is sure to spark a sequence reaction across the country — with Maharashtra being the most important market, other filmmakers are likely to carry off the discharge of their upcoming offerings, thus leaving theater owners in other states barren of new releases. Raj Kumar Mehrotra, he is the CEO of Delite Cinemas, Delhi, that re-started its operations on October 16, says each show sees barely 10 percent occupancy. "We are running in losses. Where 50 percent of capacity translates to 490 seats in our cinema, we barely see 30 to 40 people per show. Over the weekend, the footfall increases to fifteen percent."

Gurmeet Singh Seble, who owns Seble Cinema, in Delhi, urges the Multiplex Association of India to rethink its decision of not screening OTT films. He quatted that "It will do wonders for us if we'll screen Akshay Kumar's Laxmi. Nobody wants to watch past blockbusters. We need new films."Picture Of Sanjay Dutt’s New Hair Color Goes Viral