Single Screens May Go Extinct, That Is the Reality!

The famous Leela Mahal Theater in Nellore is a theater with a legacy of 75 years. Now it is being renovated and will open soon. A poster about it has been released.

However, one line in this poster has caught the attention. The line says “Nellore’s Last Single Screen”.

The history of Telugu cinema spans about 94 years. In those decades, how many blockbusters, how many classics, and how many disasters might this theater have witnessed?

In that legacy, how many superstars the theater may have seen? How many heroes’ dreams have been shattered and they have left the industry during that period? How many movie records the theater may have witnessed? How many celebrations and how many fan wars, it may have become a venue?

We should appreciate the owners who renovated it without giving the land for commercial purposes.

All this is fine as long as we think about it from one side. The future of Single Screens definitely looks bleak. Except for one or two single screen theaters somewhere, How many are actually running properly?

The audience’s mindset has changed a lot. Rates are increasing. Even if the Popcorn and Cool Drinks are very costly, they go to multiplexes when they feel like going to the cinema. There are no families who actually go to single screens. Even the youth are going to multiplexes in the name of ‘experience’.

Rates have increased, footfalls have decreased, they say. But the complaint is not actually about the rates. Most of the audiences are not excited by the films. All those complaints are because they do are not excited about some films and they need a reason to keep away from such films. They go to big films and films that excite content without any complaints.

That is because people are ready to invest money in movie tickets. They do not always feel the rates are high. The real question is whether the money they spend feels worth it. If they feel it is not worth it, that is when complaints about ticket prices begin. That’s why they go to multiplexes even though they complain.

For some people, a single screen is a memory. It’s a passion. An experience. In single screens, the crowd has no boundaries. There is no false prestige. Audience reveal real emotion for every scene. They become open.

That crowd frenzy, crowd participation is also an experience. A single screen brings out real emotions from the audience. It involves them in the movie. If you have gone to the 1 AM show on the day of Salar’s release in AMB, there is no response to the Kateramma Fight. It’s a different atmosphere in Sudarshan.

Some people say that single screens are needed for such an old experience. Otherwise, on normal days, they also go to multiplexes. They go to single screens for re-release movies, and for any event movies. But is it possible to run theaters for that occasional experience?

Maintenance in single screens is not good. There are no proper audio and video upgrades. The seats are not good, the toilets are not neat. The AC is not good, everything is true.

Theaters once took the audience for granted, but now they cannot maintain it because there is no revenue. Why there is no revenue?, that is, because the audience are not coming. Why the audience are not coming, that is, because the maintenance is not good. It is difficult for single screens to get out of that cycle.

Most single-screen theaters are located in prime areas. Today, the land where these theaters stand has become valuable real estate. Even if a theater was originally built far from the town, the area often turns prime as the town expands. If the land is monetized, the owners could benefit significantly.

Once upon a time, the owners used to feel ashamed to close the theater. It has become a habit to close theaters due to COVID. Many theaters have permanently closed during COVID. Some theaters have got into the habit of closing when there are no movies.

It is difficult to survive as a single screen unless you invest a lot and renovate like Vimal in Balanagar and Leela Mahal in Nellore. To do that, you need a lot of deep pockets. That is difficult for everyone. So, one by one, the single screens may perish. That is the reality.

Here and there, a handful will remain. They are memories for the older generations and as if to say that it used to be like this for the coming generations.