Movie hall owners await for SOPs to resume functioning from Oct 1
Kolkata: Cinema and multiplex owners are waiting for state government notification and standard operating procedure (SOP) for opening cinema halls from October 1.
"We have neither received any state government notification nor COVID-19 guidelines. Once we get it, then we will reopen the halls," said Navin Chokhani, owner of Navina Cinema.
On Saturday, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee mentioned on a social networking site that cinema halls and open air theatres will be allowed to operate in Bengal from October 1 with a limited number of participants.
"To return to normalcy, Jatras, Plays, OATs, Cinemas & all musical, dance, recital & magic shows shall be allowed to function with 50 participants or less from 1 Oct, subject to adherence to physical distancing norms, wearing of masks & compliance to precautionary protocols," the Chief Minister tweeted.
Earlier, the Eastern India Motion Pictures Association (EIMPA) and the Multiplex Association of India (MAI) have also urged the Centre to grant permission for restarting shows in cinema halls.
People associated with cinema halls in the state are sceptical that more single-screen halls will close down post the pandemic. The current number of single-screen cinema halls in the state stands at 220 only and with movie halls still under lockdown, the hall owners are finding it difficult to pay salaries of the staff associated with them. In South Kolkata, five cinema halls are presently open — Priya, Basusree, Indira, Navina and Bijoli. The closure list includes Ujjala, Bharati, Purna, Aleya etc. In Hatibagan in North Kolkata, a number of halls have closed down in the last decade.
"No one can be blamed for the closure of the cinema halls. We are bearing losses due to cinema hall closure for almost seven months. Due to COVID-19 pandemic, the government had kept the cinema halls closed for our safety," said a cinema hall owner in the city.
