Theatre owners seek clarification on new G.O.

Want to know if theatres too will be allowed to stay open 24x7

Tiruppur M. Subramaniam

With Tamil Nadu passing a G.O. allowing shops and other establishments to remain open for 24 hours, the Tamil Nadu Exhibitors Association has sought a clarification from the government on whether multiplexes and standalone movie theatres will also be allowed to function 24x7.

Increasing the number of shows a day and deregulating ticket prices has been a long-standing demand of theatre owners for a number of reasons.

While the early morning shows and flexible ticket pricing are believed to be the panacea for dwindling footfall in theatres, many believe that these changes, which are already the norm in select theatres around Tamil Nadu during major releases, will also bring down losses due to piracy.

Tamil Nadu Exhibitors Association president Tiruppur M. Subramaniam welcomed the State government’s move but hoped that theatres should also be allowed to be open throughout the day.

‘Business will improve’

“The exhibition business will improve as a result. Certainly, the business will be better for bigger movies but I am not sure if all movie theatres can afford to run the theatre throughout the day. We need to see if it is feasible. We hope the government will allow those who can do so,” said Mr Subramaniam.

Nikilesh Surya, executive director, Rohini Silver Screens, said that this could give them an opportunity to have six or seven shows in a day.

‘May benefit techies’

“We may do it during high demand season and during weekends. This could also benefit the large number of techies who work on U.S. business hours,” he said.

Udeep Reddy, Managing Director, Mayajaal, said, “During the festive seasons and big releases, we will be able to legally run the theatres 24x7.”

“The audience can also catch the new films in the first weekend itself and enable us earn more collections.”