Single-screen theatres fight tough survival battle

Amit Bathla

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, June 19

On Sunday (June 16), the city’s multiplexes were thronged with cinema lovers. But single-screen theatres such as Harchand Palace, Sukhraj, Udang and Pukhraj wore a deserted look and had just a few takers.

In this era of Netflix and Internet, single-screen cinemas are facing a financial crisis, with no alternative to keep their business alive.

A majority of single-screen theatres in the city have around 900 seats, divided in two-hall and balcony-the balcony seats being the premium and costly one. But nowadays, only a few seats get occupied. There are four shows in a day — 10 am, 1 pm, 4 pm and 7 pm.

Not getting enough audience to recover input costs, the management cancels shows.

Pawan Kumar, manager, Udang Palace, said: “We are facing hard times. We don’t get enough audience to keep our business running. We are compelled to rent our place to magicians and for Ramleela shows. It is a better deal.”

“The Internet revolution has taken away customers away from us, as people from the lower income group can watch any movie on their smart phones,” he added.

Sukhraj’s manager Omkar Dutt said: “I have been working here since its inauguration in 1975. There was a golden period of actors such as Kishore Kumar, Amitabh Bachchan and directors such as Yash Chopra and Manmohan Desai, when we had to shut the doors of our cinema due to a heavy rush.”

“These got affected first with the arrival of multiplexes and then the Internet. These cinemas cannot bear the input cost.”

“Efforts should be made to keep such single-screen theatres alive, as they still cater to an audience that cannot afford costly tickets of multiplexes,” he said.

Owners of single-screen theatres do not close their business, as they fear that the rates of property, where these are located, would come down, he added.

A ticket collector at Harchand Palace, Parshotam Kumar (57), said: “There was time when the audience used to throng single-screen cinemas in large numbers. I believe the Internet and the emergence of multiplexes, where you get a lot of entertainment facilities, are the key reason behind their downfall.”

“On weekdays, we get a larger audience than Saturday and Sundays. The situation is different in multiplexes where weekends see a huge rush,” he added.