Will new Bollywood releases like 'Sooryavanshi' resurrect single-screens post lockdown?

The film industry has suffered a huge financial blow due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Due to the lockdown, all theatres have been shut down indefinitely. Moreover, many film producers are opting to release films on OTT platforms to cope with the losses incurred by the lockdown. Many film industry experts now believe that single-screen theatres will make a resurgence and might be more profitable than multiplexes in a post-Coronavirus world. 

Why single screens might make a resurgence in a post-coronavirus world 

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Many directors, producers, trade analysts and critics believe that single screens will be resurrected in a post-coronavirus world. Speaking to a news organisation, producer Mukesh Bhatt stated that cheaper tickets will make a huge chunk of the population prefer single screens over multiplexes. Meanwhile, Director Milap Zaveri believes that all the movies set to release post lockdown are single-screen friendly movies. 

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The director further added that single screen owners think that commercial masala entertainers are the way to resurrect single screens. The director claimed that it will take Sooryavanshi, Radhe or Coolie No 1 for their business to witness a surge. Finally, Milap Zaveri mentioned that the first audiences to go to theatres post lockdown will be the masses, who prefer to watch masala movies in single-screen theatres. 

Speaking to the news organisation, Trade analyst Atul Mohan revealed that he had a similar opinion, and he also claimed that the reason why movies like Sooryanvanshi were not going to OTT was that producers knew such movies did best in single-screen theatres.

The Head of Finance & Taxation at Raj Mandir (India's biggest single-screen), claimed that his theatre has a bigger seating capacity than any high-end multiplexes. He added that their theatre would impose safety measures, such as two-seat spaces between each audience member. 

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However, director Manoj Desai believes that things will be difficult for multiplexes and single-screens. He stated that many people have left Mumbai and may not return anytime soon. He further added that people will not be thinking about entertainment even after the end of the lockdown. Moreover, the director claimed that the two-seat gap precaution will be unpopular among couples. 

PVR CEO calls out producers who are releasing movies on OTT

Just a few days ago, PVR CEO Kamal Gianchandani revealed that she was disappointed with film producers. She was unhappy with those who were releasing movies on OTT. Moreover, she revealed that PVR would not release any movies that were already on OTT platforms.

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[Promo from Akshay Kumar Instagram]