Single-screen theatres eye new roles in bid for survival
- Most of the 1,500 theatres that halted operations have not been able to convert their properties
- There are instances of single-screen theatres being used as warehouses by e-commerce firms
The covid-19 pandemic has hit India’s single-screen theatres in more ways than can be imagined. Most of the 1,500 theatres that stopped operations permanently during the lockdown last year have not been able to convert their properties into other businesses. Recurring costs, staff salaries and zero incomes proved to be the last nail in the coffin for an industry struggling with falling footfall and few commercially entertaining films per year.
On the one hand, law in states such as Maharashtra require that a plot that was originally designated a cinema property must have a theatre on the premises even if it is refurbished for other ventures. On the other, there are few takers for theatres in small towns where only a handful have been able to sell off or convert their properties into godowns at discounted prices.
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“We’re happy to convert into residential or commercial complexes or anything that the government deems viable. However, Maharashtra has had this rule in place since the 1970s where you need to have a movie theatre on a plot (originally) designated for cinema even if you redevelop it. At that time, it was meant to address the scarcity of theatres but the mentality has stayed," said Sharad Doshi, owner of Central Plaza cinema in Girgaon, Mumbai. Doshi shut his theatre following state orders in March 2020 and has no plans to reopen it. The exhibitors’ association has written to the government several times, he said, but is yet to hear back.
Independent cinemas in tier-2 towns are selling their properties at discounts of 20-25% or converting them into godowns. According to Anuj Kejriwal, chief executive and managing director, Anarock Retail, there are instances of single-screen theatres even in cities such as Hyderabad being used as godowns or warehouses by a large e-commerce company. Five single-screens in the city closed permanently in November. Four of these theatres are now being used as warehouses by the e-commerce firm.
The situation is better for theatre owners in bigger cities, some of whom have even held on to their properties in the hope of a box office turnaround sometime soon, said Abhishek Sharma, director, retail, Knight Frank, a realty consulting firm.
“Cinema spaces are uniquely designed and are often difficult to convert to anything except a family entertainment space at best," said Gulam Zia, executive director at Knight Frank India, pointing to the fact that the situation was tough for single screens even before the virus outbreak. There aren’t many buyers in the market as even the banquet hall business has been badly hit.
Single screens have long lacked the bargaining power of multiplexes and were expecting the worse.
For years, producers and distributors have grabbed a bigger share of box office revenue, leaving little money for these cinema owners. Often, they chose not to give them certain films. Cheaper tickets have also led to rowdy crowds keeping family audiences away from such properties. AVM K Shanmugam, owner of Chennai’s iconic AVM Rajeswari theatre that shut down in March right before the lockdown, said there were no family-oriented films to play and the scenario was so dismal towards the end that even a single screen like theirs was running four different films a day with none of them bringing in any crowds.
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