Multiplexes shorn of razzle-dazzle

It’s a dry spell at the box office, thanks to the ongoing tussle between the producers and multiplex owners. But they are not the sole sufferers. Single screen theatres, which rely solely on Hindi and English movies, are feeling the pinch as well. Despite trying their hand at playing re-runs of popular Hindi, English and even Tamil movies like Jodhaa Akbar, Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi, Dhoom 2, Life…in a Metro, Transformers, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Mr Bean’s Holiday, Ayyan; the theatre owners say that they failed to bring in the usual movie buffs. One such theatre  Rex, which was screening Welcome last week, has not been able to bring in the required crowd for a screening and has shutdown due to ‘maintenance problem’. Apparently, in last few weeks, many times the theatre has cancelled the shows due to lack of audience. “It has been a cat and mouse game ever since the strike began. We have been trying all measures to get people to the theatre but have failed. Though the tiff is with the multiplexes, the single theatres are suffering,” says Kamal Kapur of Rex Theatre.
 A source says that Vision Cinemas, a multiplex which has been screening re-runs of old Hindi and English films, has seen a drop of 50 to 60 per cent. “Initially, we started screening one movie a week and when we saw that the response was good for movies like Dev D and A Wednesday, we increased it to two. But things are definitely not like before,” says Srinivas of Vision Cinemas.     
So what’s keeping the audiences from coming? “Already the tickets are priced high; who will like to pay so much for a movie that one has already watched?” asks Satish, a student. Many movie buffs, deprived of their usual dose of entertainment, are looking for other options. “I used to try and catch up the latest films but with re-runs, I have chosen Kannada movies,” says Malavika, an HR Consultant.
Regional cinemas, especially Kannada and Tamil, have saved most of the popular multiplexes from a total loss. “We didn’t have to screen any old Hindi movies as the response has been equally good for the regional cinemas,” says Satish Kumar D, Cinema General Manager, PVR Cinemas.
“The crowd comes here mainly for Hindi films. So screening Kannada movies won’t bring us that much of revenue. We did think of screening old Rajkumar movies, but then again we were not too sure how the response will be,” adds Srinivas.    
But not all Kannada film producers get to screen their movies in multiplex theatres. In fact, one of the major concern of many producers and distributors in Sandalwood is the availability of theatres.
So one can ask, during the ongoing crisis, why not give a chance to regional cinema? While many single theatre owners were hesitant and chose not to comment, only Kapur went on record to say, “I have no problems with the language of the movie that is being screened, we are here for business and as long as we get the assured box-office success there shouldn’t be a problem.”