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V. Gangadhar

With Mumbai already boasting seven multiplexes and several more being planned, the message is clear, the era of single theatres is drawing to a close.

Even as the 140-odd single theatres in Mumbai resumed work after the end of a 10-day long strike demanding a reduction in entertainment tax, the message was clear. The era of the single theatres was drawing to a close; the future belonged to the multiplexes. Today, Mumbai has seven of these and more are being planned.

Veteran film exhibitor Manoj Desai, who is also the executive director of the Gaiety-Galaxy multiplex as well as the legendary Maratha Mandir theatre, is not very happy with the development. While the Government had reduced the entertainment tax (ET) for the single theatres from 55 per cent to 45 per cent, the multiplexes need not pay any ET for three years and then only 25 per cent for the next five. Of course, the multiplexes had to provide extra facilities such as video games, a theatre to stage plays, adequate parking, a crèche, gardens and so on. "The Maharashtra Government views the multiplexes as a prestige issue and a definite plus point for the city," explains Desai.

Desai, who has been in show business for 31 years, is also fighting a lone battle for reasonable admission rates in the theatres. The multiplex owners demanded and got high admission rates, with the minimum being anything between Rs 100 and Rs 150. In the process they forgot the fact that cinema was the most popular mass entertainment. "To watch a film in a modern multiplex, a family of four need to shell out more than Rs 1,000," points out Desai. "How many families can afford that kind of money." It is true that high rates have an impact on the audiences. After a survey of three or four multiplexes, one found films playing to empty houses after the first three or four days. The number of shows was also reduced or even cancelled. Yet when Desai did not agree to hike the rates in his multiplexes, he was sued by other exhibitors. He introduced a new `Dress Circle' class reserving four to six seats in the Balcony and charging Rs 100 for these. Opening a ledger he points out, "Look, on most days, these seats go empty." Desai did not stop with that. He wrote an official letter to the Revenue department, Government of Maharshtra, explaining the situation and the GR on this issue is likely to be revised so that Desai can go back to his old rates.

Unlike other multiplexes, the Desai chain attracts crowds even for films trashed in the media. Take for instance, the so-called thriller, Krishna Cottage that fared disastrously in all the multiplexes. But in the Gaiety-Galaxy chain, because of the low admission rates, the film did good business going house full most of the shows. "This is a trash film," admitted one of the viewers, Dalpatrao Ghorpade. "But here we pay only Rs 55, the air-conditioning works and it is a nice pass time."

Due to his refusal to hike admission rates, Desai lost out on films such as Kaante, Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam and many others. But his logic on low-rates-bringing-crowds worked wonderfully at the Maratha Mandir where Yash Chopra's Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge has been running for the last 10 years as morning shows. And the admission rates? Rs 17, Rs 14 and Rs 9. In its 10th year, the film, almost on all days, grosses more than the new releases that are shown as regular shows.

Multiplexes or single theatres, the major problem facing the entertainment industry is the poor quality of the average Hindi film. Sex-oriented films such as Murder or those packed with raunchy double meaning dialogue such as Masti do reasonably well. Yet well-produced films with a good story line like Koi... Mil Gaya and Baghban still attract crowds. Even for films like the recently-released Shah Rukh Khan-starrer, Main Hoon Na the distributors tried to coerce Desai to hike the rates but he stood firm and finally got his way.

Cinema is the life blood of Mumbai's entertainment. What will the cinema scene in the city be in 2015? We can anticipate an era of satellite releases without projection or prints. Digital DVD machines will get rays directly from the satellites and world film premiers will be common. Cinema screens will become wider and the prints clearer. The future does not bode well for single cinemas whose numbers may well be reduced to around 40 or so. And no one can speculate on the quality of Hindi films!

Picture by Shashi Ashiwal

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