Two days after the Delhi administration ordered cinemas in Delhi to shut down in view of the growing number of Coronavirus cases, the Multiplex Association of India today (December 30) called on Manish Sisodia, deputy chief minister of Delhi, and appealed to him to grant permission to reopen cinemas. The delegation, which was led by Ajay Bijli, chairman, PVR Ltd., lamented that the cinema industry was treated differently from other industries, most of which have not been closed down. It brought to the deputy chief minister’s notice that thanks to the various Coronavirus-induced lockdowns, the exhibition sector was already facing possible bankruptcies. The current shutdown would have a terrible impact on lakhs of people which it employs and millions of people which are indirectly employed by it, warned the delegation.
The delegation told the minister that the release of Jersey on December 31 had already been postponed because of the cinema closure in Delhi, and the releases of other films, slated to hit the screens in January 2022, were also on the brink of cancellation. It rued the fact that while malls, airlines, railways, retail shops, bars and restaurants have been permitted to continue their operations, cinemas have been ordered to shut down. And this in spite of the fact that cinemas are equipped with similar or rather better ability to ensure crowd control with all safety protocols in place. The delegation also submitted a detailed research report (presented below) showing that cinemas in different parts of the world have not been a source of COVID-19 outbreaks. The said research was commissioned by the International Union of Cinemas (UNIC) in collaboration with other global cinema associations such as the National Association of Theatre Owners (NATO) (USA) and the Multiplex Association of India (MAI).
Sisodia assured the industry delegation that the matter would be taken up with the Delhi Disaster Management Authority Task Force and other government officers.
