Tamil Nadu government on Monday, 4 January, allowed theatres in the state to open with 100 percent capacity. The state took the decision after prominent actors including Vijay and Silambarasan requested that cinema halls be allowed to function at full capacity, as new movies are slated to release during and after Pongal celebrations.
Actor Vijay had personally met the Chief Minister last week to request for a relaxation in the existing restrictions. Both Vijay’s latest film Master and Silambarasan’s Eeswaran are both expected to release during the Pongal holidays.
The government stated that citing decreasing COVID-19 cases, theatre owners associations in the state made a representation seeking an increase in seating capacity in cinema halls and multiplexes.
Following their representation, the government has added the following section to the existing permitted activities:
“The seating capacity of Cinemas/theatres/Multiplexes shall be permitted to increase from existing 0 percent to 100 percent by following the Standard Operating Procedure issued already. Further, in order to create awareness among the spectators, the precautionary measures for Covid 19 shall also be screened during the showtime,” the government order issued on Monday states.
Cinemas, theatres and multiplexes in Tamil Nadu had been allowed to reopen from 10 November with 50 percent of their seating capacity after the Ministry of Home Affairs allowed relaxations in the COVID-19 guidelines.
The move has however already garnered criticism from several quarters as theatres are closed and air-conditioned spaces, which could lead to the spread of the virus. While a 50 percent capacity allowed for booking of alternate seats, allowing for 100 percent capacity would lead to almost no physical distancing.
Chennai is already grappling with two clusters this week in two prominent five star hotels - ITC Grand Chola and Leela Palace. While 85 persons have tested positive in ITC, 20 have been tested positive in Leela Palace.
On 28 December, actor Vijay had met Edappadi Palaniswami over his upcoming release Master, and the actor, along with others from the movie’s team, had requested the Chief Minister increase the capacity as against the current capacity of 50 percent seating at theaters.
The movie starring Vijay, Vijay Sethupathi, Andrea Jeremiah, Malavika Mohanan and Arjun Das, directed by Lokesh Kanagaraj and produced by Xavier Britto, is slated to be the biggest release in Tamil post the pandemic.
(This story was first published in The News Minute and has been republished with permission)
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