Ratan Saha

Boards of two multinational restaurant chains—KFC and Pizza Hut—have come up on the facade of The Regal, leading cine-lovers to wonder if the 1932 single-screen theatre will finally be shut down.

Diwali has turned into a make-or-break time for theatres in Bengal after the state allowed 70% occupancy. The festival will see the release of the biggest line-up of three movies — Rajinikanth’s ‘Annatthe’, ‘Sooryavanshi’ starring Akshay Kumar, Katrina Kaif, Ajay Devgn and Ranveer Singh, and the American superhero film ‘Eternals’ — since the pandemic broke out. That effectively means a litmus test for audience’s interest in the big screen in the absence of alternate seating arrangement.

'The Kerala Story' movie is being screened in only one theatre in West Bengal but it is evoking a good response from the audience, an official of the Eastern India Motion Picture Association (EIMPA) said on Thursday.

The physical edition of the 27th Kolkata International Film Festival (KIFF) will be held from January 7 this year. KIFF chairperson Raj Chakraborty said, “We will abide by the government notification. KIFF will be held maintaining all health protocols.

The story revolves around an elite team from Intelligence Bureau who are tasked to locate and destroy a criminal gang who are carrying out dangerous operations in and around Kolkata and along the border area.

A request was made to immediately refund the pending government rebate to exhibitors who have been paying the SGST from their own pocket. If the government doesn’t resolve these issues by February 15, the letter said Bengal exhibitors will be forced to collect the entire CGST and SGST from the patrons.

KOLKATA: Never mind if police have requested Puja organisers to keep Osama bin Laden out of pandal lighting, the attack on the World Trade Center has crept into a music cassette and a CD, set to be released within a week.

The state government on Thursday assured the 250-odd single-screen theatre exhibitors that their GST rebate will be refunded to them by next month.

A gang of robbers on Friday broke into a car parking zone, stabbed two security guards and injured two others at Moina near Barasat in North 24-Parganas.

According to eyewitnesses, two motorbike-borne youths, suspected to be ACMA cadres, forcefully picked up Saha from NH-31 (C) when he was going towards Tanda Bazar on a bicycle.

As the Multiplex Association of India (MAI) called for unity on Monday to ensure exclusive theatrical window release of movies, ratan saha, chairman of the exhibitors’ section of Eastern India Motion Pictures Association (EIMPA) requested producers not to release their movies on OTT (Over the top) platforms, fearing that such a move will force the existing single screens to shut down in Bengal after the lockdown is lifted.

Following tragic cough syrup incidents in other states, Jharkhand's Health Minister Irfan Ansari inspected medicine stores in Ranchi. He ordered samples of various cough syrups to be sent for testing to ensure they don't contain harmful components, with 47 samples seized statewide. The minister also stressed the importance of prescription-only sales for cough syrups.

Malancha cinema will open its doors on August 31 after remaining closed for a fortnight. However, what has surprised many is that Malancha does not have fire and electricity clearances.

Some of the single-screen cinemas across the city — including Nandan, Nazrul Tirtha and Navina — were closed down temporarily on Monday evening, following chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s directive to shut down theatres till March 31 in the wake of the corona virus epidemic.

After the central government’s new guidelines allowed cinemas to operate at a higher capacity, a section of exhibitors is appealing to the Centre to insist on separate censorship for movies to release on OTT. Worried with content meant for big screen releasing first on OTT, ratan saha, the chairman of Eastern India Motion Pictures Association’s exhibition section, has appealed to All-India Multiplex Association to form a new group that will finance movies only for the big screen.

Without stressing on alternate seating, the state has allowed cinemas, along with theatre halls, manchas and auditoria to operate with 70% capacity. This effectively means viewers in Bengal can sit together and enjoy movies if they follow all health protocols.

The lockdown on Delhi theatres till March 31 has made exhibitioners in Bengal wonder if a similar call needs to be taken here as well. The “sharp dip” in footfall after the global outbreak of coronavirus and paucity of big Hindi movie releases have forced many Bengal theatres to consider staying shut for a while. The final call is expected to be taken by Sunday.