Mumbai: Even as the state government allowed movie theatres to reopen from Thursday at 50% capacity, merely a handful were in a position to do so. Several multiplexes had cancelled their housekeeping contracts months ago and some had even cut their power connection. Besides, a majority are yet to put in place a new revenue model based on the government’s 50% seating criterion.

Multiplex Association of India office bearers say it will take at least one more week, till November 13, for even 25% of the total 745 screens in the state to start playing movies as they have to rehire staff as well as come up with a new revenue model. While 575 of the 745 screens in the state are inside 150 multiplexes, the rest, 170, are single screens.

Mumbai has 193 screens in 42 multiplexes and 66 are single screen theatres. “All the equations around financial feasibility will have to be revisited in the backdrop of the state’s condition to run theatres at 50% capacity. This will take some time to set,” said the association secretary Prakash Chaphalkar.

Theatre owners could have made arrangements to start shows immediately if the state government had announced the date earlier, said Chaphalkar. The state made the announcement on Wednesday.

“Some members are of the opinion that if they open theatres so quickly, they may incur more losses than during the lockdown period. Also, food will not be allowed inside cinema halls,” added Chapalkar, pointing out that talks were on with producers to decide on the content and revenue models that can survive in the new normal, at least till full seating capacity is allowed.

In the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, Navi Mumbai has 25 screens in six multiplexes, Thane has 10 screens in three multiplexes, besides four single screens, and Kalyan-Dombivli has only eight single screens. Major players in the state’s segment include Inox, PVR, Cinepolis, Carnival and Citypride.

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The Government of Maharashtra issued an order on November 4 in the evening, allowing cinemas to start operations from November 5. It comes as a relief to the film industry, but that’s not all. The order, which has been in the offing for months, and was expected to arrive on Tuesday, November 3, arrived only on Wednesday, permitting cinema halls to function at 50 per cent capacity.

Kamal Gianchandani, head of PVR Cinemas and the Multiplex Association of India, said, “It’s a big positive that cinemas have been permitted to start operations in Maharashtra. We wholeheartedly thank the state government and have a sense of gratitude for this. Things are still unfolding and we will take each day as it comes.”

The government order states that food and beverage will not be allowed inside cinema halls, multiplexes and drama theatres, and that the state’s Cultural Affairs Department and local authorities will issue an SOP, which has to be followed while functioning. These have been prepared keeping in mind the SOPs and guidelines issued by the Information and Broadcasting Ministry last month.

At the time of going to press, the website of PVR Cinemas displayed a list of films under its coming soon header with November 6 as a date on a few of them, while Cinepolis had not listed Mumbai in its cities for online ticket booking and Inox did not have any movies listed on its website for the Mumbai region until the morning of November 5.

When we spoke to Akshaye Rathi, head of Saroj Screens (a single screen chain), he said, “It’s a huge relief and we are thankful to the government, but this is not the end of the story. There is a lot more to be done. We have to prepare the properties that have been shut for months. We have to ensure that the SOPs are in order, and most importantly, we have to have a schedule in place as to what we will screen and at what time. These are decisions that we can make only when we know which film producers are willing to release their content in a cinema hall. These are negotiations that have been on for months and will go on for some more time. Besides, opening will also require assistance and aid from the government bodies.”

According to a source from Inox Leisure, their properties in Mumbai were not likely to open on is working overtime to ensure we have a screening calendar in place at the earliest. The first fresh release could possibly be Suraj Pe Mangal Bhari, but there is no clarity yet. Tenet is also something we are counting on.” A source from Cinepolis added, “Opening cinemas in Mumbai will be done in phases. We have to adhere to the fact that the entire city and state is not COVID-19 free. Making a thorough plan will take a few days.”

A source from film trade pointed out that Warner Bros, the studio that backed Tenet, counted among the hopeful big releases in this period of rebooting, may also need time to canvas the film in the country. He said, “Tenet is unlikely to release in India before November 20. They need time for publicity. Also, no cinema chains will be happy to operate unless they are allowed to serve food and beverage as that is their main source of revenue and that hasn’t been approved yet.”

Earlier we had reported films like Thappad, Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior and Street Dancer 3D were among the films that were in talks for a re-release at that time. The makers of PM Narendra Modi (the biopic on Prime Minister Modi) had also announced the film’s re-release. On Wednesday, November 4, Karan Johar said that Baahubali will also be screened in theatres again.

Since cinemas in Maharashtra didn’t open last month, and the cinemas in some key foreign markets have gone into shut-down mode yet again, Sooryavanshi, '83 and Radhe have been moved to the next year. Other key films are also planning a similar move with their big-ticket ventures. 

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We may be a week away from Diwali, but the state government's recent decision spread festive cheer among theatre owners across Maharashtra — on Wednesday, the Uddhav Thackeray-led government greenlit the reopening of cinemas at 50 per cent capacity after an eight-month shutdown. 

Trade analyst Taran Adarsh says that most theatre owners were caught unaware by the sudden announcement, and are likely to throw open the doors only by next week. "We can't have safety measures and programming in place overnight. At such a short notice, no new film is ready. Most cinemas will start before Diwali," he states.

Exhibitors were apprised of the standard operating procedures (SOPs) — which include staggered seating, thermal checks and mandatory use of masks, among others — on Thursday morning. PV Sunil, managing director, Carnival Cinemas, notes that the Maharashtra government has introduced a rule that is not followed in other states.

"While allowing only packaged food is part of the Centre's SOPs, the state government has also stated that nobody can carry food inside the hall. So, during the intermission, patrons will have to wrap up their meal [at the cafeteria] before going back to the auditorium. We need to see how we can implement this," he says, before adding, "We will need three to four days to sanitise all the theatres and get the staff on board. We are hoping to restart operations by Wednesday or Thursday."

Now, the bigger hurdle facing the theatre owners will be lining up movies as most new releases — including Akshay Kumar's Laxmii, Anurag Basu's Ludo and Rajkummar Rao's Chhalaang — have queued up for digital premieres in the coming week. Amit Sharma, managing director, Miraj Entertainment, hopes to bounce back into business next Friday with Manoj Bajpayee and Diljit Dosanjh's new release. "We are keeping our fingers crossed for Suraj Pe Mangal Bhari. If there's a fresh release, the audience will be kicked about coming to theatres. But if we don't hear anything from the makers, we will have re-runs." Echoing his sentiment, Manoj Desai, executive director, G7 multiplex, says, "I will open my theatres on November 13. Hopefully, we will have a new release in Suraj Pe Mangal Bhari. There is no point in re-releasing past hits."

Rajiv Patni, COO, INOX Leisure, adds, "We are completely geared up for the new normal, assigning topmost priority to safety and hygiene. We will start opening our cinemas as per operational readiness."

Trade buzz suggests that Suraj Pe Mangal Bhari and Indoo Ki Jawani may enjoy a big-screen release