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Back sans bang
Most people walking in were just passers-by who couldn't believe their luck on seeing the open ticket counters. -- Photos: K. Gopinathan
REMEMBER WHEN you coordinated college hours with matinee shows? One bakra would be democratically picked to bunk an extra lecture to stand in the ticket queue. Invariably, the movie plan would casually extend into a late lunch, and despite the eagle-eyed princi, you lived to tell the tale. The good old days of stealthily watched movies are back! Last Friday, Kill Bill 2, Shrek II, Out of Time, Runaway Jury and Man on Fire were back on the big screens.
Yes, unfortunately, it's English that has been given the first thumbs-up. Sincerest condolences to Hindi, Tamil and Telugu movie buffs. Hopefully, the coming weeks will rain a little more mercy on the multi-lingual movie lover.
`When theatres were closed I went to the CD guy. Rs. 10 more on rental and I was watching movies again.' -- Archana
To DVD parlours
`As a hosteller without TV, CDs are not an option. So I had to find other places to go out to.' -- Smitha
One might think that Bangaloreans would've screamed and yelled during the last two weeks, making it loud and clear that no one could snatch away their right to entertainment. But typically, most people sighed, shook their head sadly, and headed to the nearest DVD/CD parlour. It's the classic case of black over white — if the big screens starved the moviegoer, he found a more accessible antidote in the pirated CDs. Subhro, an engineering student, said: "Many people told me Shrek II was a must-watch. I kept putting it off, and then the theatres shut. But my CD guy had a pirated copy that I rented."
To the rescue
`Showing only Kannada movies won't make us watch them. We'd rather wait for good quality movies.' -- Bharat
Many such "CD guys" came to the rescue during the movie drought. Peter, who has a small CD rental shop in Ulsoor market, was only too happy about the turn of events: "It's not that my business doubled or anything, but it did increase a great deal. There was a lot of demand for new releases, so instead of waiting for the customer to return the CD, I had to send my boy to pick it up in half a day or so!"
Amit Ranjha, a call centre employee, felt that although there is a general notion that there isn't much to do in the city, the situation "forced most of us to scan the engagements column in papers, looking for plays, dance and music concerts, exhibitions, and so on." He admits to have never even given a thought to this kind of "time pass" before, even though it was generally more economical too. Amit added with a grin: "Of course, you can't easily hold your girlfriend's hand at a play!" Nagappa, a young software professional standing in the queue to watch Pakkadmane Hudugi, said: "Banning non-Kannada movies will definitely increase Kannada speakers because people will try to learn Kannada at least out of desperation." A quick scan of his expression revealed no signs of dark humour or sarcasm. He continued: "So what if Bangalore is a cosmopolitan city? Let those outsiders also learn Kannada." When I asked him if he knew that English movies were being screened as of Friday, he excitedly asked which theatres had reopened and if Kill Bill was actually as good as the reviews said.
Surprised
`The ban will promote Kannada films. They should stop airing non-Kannada channels also.' -- Satish
Symphony, Rex, Plaza and Innovative Multiplex, which heralded the move, didn't exactly get the film-crazy crowds they were expecting as soon as they opened their gates. Most of the people walking in were just passers-by who couldn't believe their luck on seeing the open ticket counters. "All right then, let's watch whatever's running," one couple said. "It might not last too long."
ROHINI MOHAN
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