Theatre owners upbeat over nod to 100% capacity

GUWAHATI: A day after the

Union ministry of home affairs

(MHA) issued standard operating procedures (SOP) allowing

cinema halls

to allow functioning at full capacity, Assam’s theatre owners, artistes’ fraternity and film lovers said they were now finally hoping for a turnaround.


Cinema halls and theatres are running with 50% seat capacity. “Now, they will be permitted to operate at higher seating capacity, for which a revised SOP will be issued by the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting in consultation with MHA,” the SOP stated.

Chinmoy Sarma, the owner of the Anuradha Cineplex that turned 50 on Wednesday, said, “The SOP has finally given a relief to cinema hall owners in the state. However, we will have to wait for a couple of days as an SOP will be issued for the halls and theatres by the

state disaster management authority

on the basis of I&B ministry’s revised SOP.”

Sarma, the president of All Assam Cinema Hall Owners’ Association, said hall owners are eagerly waiting to resume functioning with 100% capacity after a prolonged cap due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Meanwhile, talking about the heavy fixed charges for electricity consumption and the penalty levied on halls for non-uses of electricity, Sarma said, “Chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal has assured us to look into the matter.”

The artistes’ fraternity is upbeat, too. “The

cinema industry

is not just an industry; it is a livelihood for many. Normalcy will return to the halls now. No OTT platform can reach the level of cinema halls,” Jatin Bora, popular Assamese actor, told TOI.

Welcoming the government’s move to allow halls to resume with full capacity, actor Pratuti Porasor wondered, “The rule of 50% (capacity) was not followed anywhere. We have not seen it in political rallies or public meetings… why was this rule imposed only on cinema halls?”

The 78 cinema halls across the state, including 20 in the city, provide livelihood opportunities to thousands of people. Four movie theatres in Guwahati, one in Nagaon district and one in Bijoynagar in Kamrup (Rural) have been shut down as they were unable to bear heavy losses owing to the prolonged lockdown.

The MHA has asked authorities to decide on the gatherings in social, religious, sports, entertainment, educational and cultural events. Earlier, gatherings were allowed up to 50% of the hall capacity, with a ceiling of 200 people in closed spaces; and keeping of the size of the ground/space in view, in open spaces.

Moreover, swimming pools, which were so far allowed for sportspersons only, will be permitted for use by all, for which a revised SOP will be issued by the Union ministry of youth affairs & sports, in consultation with the MHA.

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