J&K: After 30 years, Kashmir gets first multiplex in Srinagar
Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Tuesday inaugurated a multiplex in Srinagar, ending the Kashmir Valley's three-decade-long wait for a cinema screen. Sinha inaugurated the INOX multiplex in Sonawar, which took almost five years to be completed. Owned by a Kashmiri Pandit business family, the multiplex has 520 seats and marks a big milestone in the history of cinema in the Valley.
Why does this story matter?
Cinema halls have been absent in the Valley since the militancy days of the 1990s when theater owners shut shop following threats. While Srinagar had about 12 cinemas before the 1990s, businessmen were threatened by militant outfits to close them. In 1999, militants carried out a deadly grenade attack at Regal Cinema in Srinagar's Lal Chowk, turning all efforts of theater revival to dust.
'Big dream that has come true'
After opening one multipurpose cinema hall each in Shopian and Pulwama on Sunday, Sinha inaugurated Srinagar's first multiplex on Tuesday. Notably, Aamir Khan's Laal Singh Chaddha, partly shot in Kashmir, was the first film to be screened, Hindustan Times reported. "For us, this is a big dream...come true," said Vikas Dhar, who belongs to the family owning the multiplex, adding it has state-of-the-art equipment.
Socio-economic revolution in J&K, says L-G Sinha
'Vikram Vedha' to premier on September 30
Two of the three screens will start operations on September 30, and the third will open in October, The Indian Express reported. Hrithik Roshan-Saif Ali Khan starrer Vikram Vedha will be the first film to premiere here. INOX will reportedly permit online ticket booking soon.
Multipurpose cinema halls inaugurated last week
On Sunday (September 18), Sinha inaugurated multipurpose cinema halls in Pulwama and Shopian, marking a "historic day" for Jammu and Kashmir. The halls have facilities for movie screenings, skilling of youth, and infotainment, too. "We will build such multipurpose cinema halls in every district of Jammu and Kashmir soon," the L-G said earlier. These multipurpose halls were developed under J&K's Mission Youth program.
