Kashmir to get its first multiplex cinema in September

In September, Kashmir will get its first multiplex theatre, which will show the most recent Bollywood and Hollywood releases to a population desperately in need of some form of mass entertainment.

The 520-seat INOX-designed multiplex will be the first movie theatre in Kashmir, where separatist unrest last erupted in 1989. In addition to delivering a taste of cutting-edge cinematic entertainment, it will feature numerous food courts, making it particularly attractive to families with young children.

The 'Khatambandh' ceiling, typical of the Central Asian style of architecture prevalent in Kashmir, is featured in the multiplex's interior design.

The cinema's proprietor, Vikas Dhar, is his father Vijay's son; Vijay owned the historic Broadway theatre in Srinagar, which burned down in the mid-1990s. Dhar is the son of the late D.P.Dhar, a prominent politician in Jammu and Kashmir who was close to both Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi and hence played a key role in the region's politics.

D.P.Dhar as Indian ambassador in Russia played a vital role in consolidating Indo-Soviet relations.