It’s time for theatres to re-open: Ravichandran

Will the first day, first show rush as we knew it is a thing of the past? Will cinema as we consume and know it to be in for a paradigm shift?  

These are senior actor Ravichandran’s concerns at this moment when there seems to be no clarity about the way forward for the entertainment industry. “Cinema has to be watched as a family, and it’s not the same as sitting in a distance and watching a film. We have to now wait and watch as to whether people will come to theatres like they visit the vegetable market. However, in my opinion, viewers are waiting to watch films and will do so while taking precautions. By now people understand how to fight against the coronavirus and are learning to live with it,” he says, adding that the pandemic has been a great leveller, and has got people to press the reset button in their lives. 

According to Ravichandran, a further delay in easing the lockdown will only create problems for the livelihoods of many. The lockdown has got people lethargic and people need to snap out of that as soon as possible. “The pandemic is not one person’s or the government’s problem. It is something that affects every individual. Shutting down theatres any further will not solve any issues but will create many. It is time that the government thinks of re-opening malls and theatres,” says Ravichandran, adding that if the government was in favour of opening liquor shops for revenue, entertainment too can help in that. “They are so many lives depending on the cinema. People with a stable financial background might not worry but for those whose bread and butter is cinema, will struggle. COVID-19 is definitely a risk but when the government has eased so many restrictions, I don’t understand why this is not applicable to the film industry,” he wonders.

Awareness is the need of the hour rather than creating panic, believes Ravichandran, adding that if the government can come up with new systems for other industries, the same should apply to films too. “My suggestion would that timings need to be worked on,” he says.