The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Saturday, 30 January, allowed cinema halls to operate at 100% occupancy from 1 February onwards, as per a report by The Indian Express. The Ministry of Information & Broadcasting issued a new set of SOPs for cinema halls and theatres to prevent the spread of coronavirus. As of now, cinema halls and theatres were operating at 50% seating capacity.
Group Chief Executive Officer of Reliance Entertainment Shibasish Sarkar, producer of Sooryavanshi and ‘83, told Pinkvilla that following this new development, one of the films is expected to release sometime around March/April. Directed by Rohit Shetty, Sooryavanshi stars Akshay Kumar in the lead. On the other hand, Ranveer Singh plays Kapil Dev in '83
"Allowing cinema halls to operate at more than 50% capacity is very encouraging. We had stated earlier that we have been planning to release either Sooryavanshi or ‘83 in the last week of March or first week of April. This decision by the government will help us reach a decision".
Here are some of the guidelines put forward by the I&B Ministry for cinema hall owners and audiences.
Adequate physical distancing of at least 6 feet to be followed outside the cinema halls, common and waiting areas at all times.
Use of face covers/masks to be made mandatory.
Availability of hand sanitizers at entry and exit points as well as common areas within the premises.
Installation of Aarogya Setu shall be advised to all.
The news was met with great enthusiasm by film distributors and theatre owners, who have been facing a lot of difficulties ever since theatres had to shut down owing to the pandemic. Producers Guild of India posted on Twitter, “We welcome the decision of @MIB_India to allow 100% capacity in cinemas from February 1 and extend our sincere gratitude to Honourable @PrakashJavdekar ji and everyone involved in facilitating this important step in our industry’s recovery.”
(With inputs from Pinkvilla)
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