Priya Entertainments launched the first Bioscope, its chain of multiplex, at Axis Mall in Rajarhat on Thursday, and threw the gauntlet at other multiplex chains by adopting an aggressive pricing strategy.

?Our focus is the middle income group population,? said Arijit Dutta, MD, PEPL, ?our tickets will be priced between Rs 50 and Rs 75.? Inox, which also has a property at Rajarhat, with four screens, has tickets priced between Rs 50 on a weekday going up to Rs 190 on the weekends.?

A multiplex official, on condition of anonymity, dismissed Priya?s price as ?an introductory offer? and said other players would stick to their price points for now.

In its 51st year, Dutta said Priya?s multiplex is a ?themeplex, with four screens dedicated to a particular theme.? So screen one is Theme Egypt and called Cleopatra; the 270-seater also has a performing arts stage with state-of-the-art equipment. The three other screens touch on the universe, the ocean and life in 180 BC for themes. ?Today?s multiplexes are without character, we wanted to do something different,? said Dutta.

The four screens apart, Bioscope also has a kids screen, ?where comics will stream and we will have governesses to look after the children?. PEPL is also tying up with a toy company ? ?we are talking to several.?

Dutta has also left room for a conference room which can double up as a VIP private screening area. ?Kolkata lacks preview screens. We have added a 40-50 seat preview room at Bioscope.?

While Rajarhat is first off the block, there are two on the anvil, one in Durgapur and the other at Thimpu in Bhutan.

Dutta was also very keen that Bioscope had a ?lobby with lots of sofas and adda space?. So, Rajarhat has a plush lobby complete with a Satyajit Ray corner. ?We have lots of old photographs from Ray film premiers and posters of Ray films? we are putting all that up.?

Dutta pegged the cost of the project, which has been executed together with the mall promoter, at Rs 17 crore, sourced from internal accrual. ?We are debt free,? he said.

Pointing out that Bengal lacked theatres ? 300 single screens have closed down of 800 ? Dutta said PEPL will also focus on opening single screens, especially in the districts.