Connect with us

Entertainment

Bollywood stays on the sidelines as Indian cinemas reopen after eight months

 


By Shilpa Jamkhandikar

MUMBAI (Reuters) – Cinemas in parts of India opened for the first time in eight months on Thursday, but with no major Bollywood releases any time soon, owners of struggling theaters are concerned whether audiences can be drawn to the big screen.

All of India’s nearly 10,000 movie screens have remained closed since the country imposed a strict lockdown in March of this year, at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

As Prime Minister Narendra Modi calls for a gradual easing of measures, some states have allowed theaters to reopen, albeit at 50% capacity and with strict restrictions in place.

The cinema staff greeted with flowers and vermilion the first, relatively few visitors who wore masks.

“It feels good … Everyone was bored sitting at home and it feels good to come here,” said Ramesh Gupta, who came to watch a movie in the town of Prayagraj, in northern India.

Bollywood is not releasing new films in theaters at this time despite the festival season ahead, when ticket sales are generally peaking and audiences are flocking to theaters.

“It’s a chicken and egg situation,” said Shibasish Sarkar, CEO of Reliance Entertainment, which has two big-priced movies waiting to be released.

“We won’t know if the audience will come if we don’t release a movie, but the big question is whether that audience is enough,” he said.

OLD FILMS

For now, theaters are showing older films, including a biopic of Modi, first released after his resounding election victory last year.

Instead of waiting for theaters to open, several Bollywood production houses have instead sold films to streaming platforms such as Netflix, Disney and Amazon’s Prime Video, which have created several titles in recent months.

“We’re trying to test the waters, see if the audience will come back. Once they do, we hope to see new movies come out,” Akshaye Rathi, a theater owner who owns properties in the central states, told Reuters. from Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. .

For the coronavirus-stricken theater industry in India, deprived of Bollywood blockbusters, analysts say darker months await.

“Many single-screen theaters will probably never open, and we won’t experience the full impact until the theaters actually open,” said Shailesh Kapoor of Ormax, an agency that tracks Bollywood releases.

(Reporting by Shilpa Jamkhandikar in Mumbai; additional reporting by Sumit Khanna in Ahmedabad and Subrata NagChoudhary in Kolkata. Editing by Alasdair Pal, Shri Navaratnam and Gareth Jones)

What Are The Main Benefits Of Comparing Car Insurance Quotes Online

LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / June 24, 2020, / Compare-autoinsurance.Org has launched a new blog post that presents the main benefits of comparing multiple car insurance quotes. For more info and free online quotes, please visit https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/the-advantages-of-comparing-prices-with-car-insurance-quotes-online/ The modern society has numerous technological advantages. One important advantage is the speed at which information is sent and received. With the help of the internet, the shopping habits of many persons have drastically changed. The car insurance industry hasn't remained untouched by these changes. On the internet, drivers can compare insurance prices and find out which sellers have the best offers. View photos The advantages of comparing online car insurance quotes are the following: Online quotes can be obtained from anywhere and at any time. Unlike physical insurance agencies, websites don't have a specific schedule and they are available at any time. Drivers that have busy working schedules, can compare quotes from anywhere and at any time, even at midnight. Multiple choices. Almost all insurance providers, no matter if they are well-known brands or just local insurers, have an online presence. Online quotes will allow policyholders the chance to discover multiple insurance companies and check their prices. Drivers are no longer required to get quotes from just a few known insurance companies. Also, local and regional insurers can provide lower insurance rates for the same services. Accurate insurance estimates. Online quotes can only be accurate if the customers provide accurate and real info about their car models and driving history. Lying about past driving incidents can make the price estimates to be lower, but when dealing with an insurance company lying to them is useless. Usually, insurance companies will do research about a potential customer before granting him coverage. Online quotes can be sorted easily. Although drivers are recommended to not choose a policy just based on its price, drivers can easily sort quotes by insurance price. Using brokerage websites will allow drivers to get quotes from multiple insurers, thus making the comparison faster and easier. For additional info, money-saving tips, and free car insurance quotes, visit https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/ Compare-autoinsurance.Org is an online provider of life, home, health, and auto insurance quotes. This website is unique because it does not simply stick to one kind of insurance provider, but brings the clients the best deals from many different online insurance carriers. In this way, clients have access to offers from multiple carriers all in one place: this website. On this site, customers have access to quotes for insurance plans from various agencies, such as local or nationwide agencies, brand names insurance companies, etc. "Online quotes can easily help drivers obtain better car insurance deals. All they have to do is to complete an online form with accurate and real info, then compare prices", said Russell Rabichev, Marketing Director of Internet Marketing Company. CONTACT: Company Name: Internet Marketing CompanyPerson for contact Name: Gurgu CPhone Number: (818) 359-3898Email: [email protected]: https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/ SOURCE: Compare-autoinsurance.Org View source version on accesswire.Com:https://www.Accesswire.Com/595055/What-Are-The-Main-Benefits-Of-Comparing-Car-Insurance-Quotes-Online View photos



picture credit

ExBUlletin

to request, modification Contact us at Here or [email protected]