Theatre owners hail govt move to allow six shows a day for new releases

Tiruppur: Tamil Nadu Theatre and Multiplex Owners Association on Wednesday called the Tamil Nadu government’s decision permitting theatres across the state to screen special shows from 6 am as “Deepavali gift” to the film fraternity.

Speaking to reporters, association president Tirupur Subramaniam said this increases the daily limit to six shows during major festive releases, a long-standing demand of the industry. Subramaniam pointed out that neighbouring states-- Karnataka, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana, already permit early morning screenings from 6 am.

“When screenings commenced at 9 am in Tamil Nadu, audiences across other southern states were completing their shows by 8.15 am to 8.30 am,” he said. He said in today’s fast-paced digital media environment, public reviews and box-office verdict reach audiences before the first show even begins in Tamil Nadu, dampening viewer enthusiasm and severely impacting the opening collections of film producers.

“We placed these operational difficulties before the Chief Minister (C Joseph Vijay), who immediately issued orders allowing early morning 6 am screenings,” he added.

Highlighting the economic benefit to the state exchequer, Subramaniam noted that the revision from the previous four-to-five-show cap to six shows a day would increase commercial entertainment tax receipts by an estimated 20 per cent. He noted that since ticketing and revenue operations are digitally monitored by the state government, this step will generate substantial revenue without any revenue leakage.

He added that early morning timings cater directly to diverse urban demographics, including night-shift IT employees concluding work at 5 am, as well as office-goers and government employees keen to catch the “first day, first show” buzz before heading to work by 10 am.

Subramaniam also disclosed that the joint industry bodies have urged the state government to overhaul archaic regulations framed under the Tamil Nadu Cinemas (Regulation) Act of 1952, which are over seven decades old.

“None of our pending demands entail any revenue loss to the government. The administration has assured us that after Deepavali, existing outdated laws will be re-examined and aligned with modern requirements. With regulatory relaxation, we anticipate that the number of functional movie screens in Tamil Nadu could double from the current 1,200 by 2026-27, creating vital theatrical space for both big-budget productions and small-scale films,” he said.

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