Is it curtains for TN?s single-screen theatres?

Even as blockbusters like Rajnikant?s Endhiran rake in crores and multiplex chains splash new screens across the state, Tamil Nadu?s single-screen theatres are a dying breed, shutting shop at the rate of three a month. Outdated laws, rising real estate prices, minimum guarantees demanded by distributors and movie piracy have taken a heavy toll on the single-screens, which was once the beacon of the southern movie industry. Unable to renovate or charge more, the single-screens struggle to stay alive even as multiplexes lure viewers away.

The state that once boasted of 2,400 single-screen halls now have just 1,260 of them. According to theatre owners, this creates a long queue of movies waiting to hit the screens.

Tamil Nadu Theatre Owner?s Association (TNOTA) president Rohini Paneerselvam points to the demand-supply gap in this industry, which caters to budget-conscious producers and viewers alike. ?A decade ago, we released 98 films a year, but now we have 140 films awaiting release. Single-screens face more risk since the majority of these are small-budget movies with no guarantee of success. How can single-screen theatre owners take a bet and pay Rs 15 lakh upfront as minimum guarantee for low-budget flicks without an impressive starcast? On an average, 60 films get filed into a queue for want of theatres and most of them are medium and low-budget films which do not attract the high-spending multiplex audience.?

Unlike Mumbai or Bangalore, multiplex entrepreneurs are still fewer in Tamil Nadu, due to the low-cost nature. The average ticket price is Rs 250 per head in the first two cities, while it is a flat Rs 120 in Tamil Nadu, leading to slower returns.

However, the fact that there has been a steady rise in mall multiplexes ? including addition of 60 screens in existing multiplexes ? indicates the cautious pace of modernisation. Sources say there are around 300 screens planned by exhibitors like PVR Cinema, INOX and Satyam cinema in Madurai, Coimbatore and Tirupur, which may open by 2012-13.

Single-screen theatres say releasing a large number of prints at film launch affects single-screen theatres. ?Prints of big budget flicks featuring Vijay and Rajnikanth are made into many copies to cram all available single screen theatres and some multiplexes. Endhiran made Rs 70 crore in the first of week solely with its omnipresent release across the state. While single-screen theatres die out, a source of cheap filmi entertainment to economy-class theatre goers vanishes. Single-screen theatres are considered to be budget theatre-goers? haunt, charging between Rs 25 and Rs 50 a ticket.?

?Many struggling theatres convert their properties into marriage halls, call centres and service apartments. For us, there is no freedom to do business. Unlike multiplexes, single-screen theatres have to earn revenues solely from ticket sales. Ticket prices at single-screens are controlled by the Cinematography Act. The law is even stringent on floor plans and theatres cannot refurbish the existing seats to wider and broader ones nor increase the legroom, as rigid seat measurements as per the Act prohibit such modifications,? he said. Paneerselvam added that the law needs to be softened for the benefit of both low-cost films and non-premium class audience.

The theatre owners want the government to decontrol ticket pricing for single-screens. ?The law should be relaxed to allow a reasonable hike in ticket rates to recoup investments required to refurbish theatres,? the TNOTA president says. ?Ticket sales are our sole source of revenue… Without improving comfort levels, it would be unconscionable to raise the ticket charges and cover our operating margins.?

However, multiplex owners are have a different take on the issue ? modernisation and innovation cam save the day, they say. Abhirami Ramanathan who owns Abhirami Mega Mall, the first multiplex in Chennai, says, ?In today?s buyers market, innovation alone can save exhibitors. What is required is a major restructuring. Notwithstanding legal issues, single-screens should devise a gameplan to ramp up screens and compete with multiplexes.?

?Shanti Theatre owned by late thespian Sivaji Ganesan?s family and Kollywood?s much-acclaimed AVM group?s AVM Rajeshwari in central Chennai are good examples of screen additions and subsequent increase in audience walk- ins. There are many finance options available. There are few risks as Tamil films still rake in 70% revenue from movie theatres,? he added. Ramanathan is also a former president of TNOTA.

Echoes Suresh Kumar, CEO of Real Image Technologies, which builds digital cinema infrastructure for exhibitors. ?There are both capex and opex models available for single-screens to go digital in their expansion plans obviating the total cost of ownership (TCO) fears in the minds of exhibitors. Digital upgradation is about Rs 50 lakh to Rs 60 lakh per screen and along with digitalising, the enabling of digital cinema advertising other than ticket sales revenues, could open ad revenues stream for exhibitors in enhancing their revenue potential and return on investment,? he said.