Theatre sees an upswing as Bollywood disappears from Bangalore's multiplexes

The exhibitor-multiplex standoff has left Bollywood buffs with no movies to watch this season. MiD DAY found that the absence of new releases has nudged some towards theatre.

Sudarshan (23) is a new convert. "Since there are no Hindi movies in the multiplexes, a friend suggested we could go watch a play. We did not welcome the idea initially, but at the end of the play we realised we had thoroughly enjoyed the experience," he said. The sports federation employee wants to go back to Ranga Shankara for more plays.

Let's play: Ranga Shankara prices tickets at Rs 49 and Rs 99. Theatre tickets are usually cheaper than multiplex tickets pic/Rameshu00a0HS

Ranga Shankara manager Jagadish Malnad is happy to see more young people gravitating to theatre. "The new converts are game only for comedy and entertaining plays, not serious stuff," he told MiD DAY.

Theatre is generally cheaper than a multiplex movie. A ticket for play is priced between Rs 50 and 100. But a movie at the multiplex costs at least twice as much.

Jagadish is convinced the money isn't the thing. "Even if our plays are highly priced we will continue to have a loyal audience. People don't mind spending on entertainment," he said.

Chowdaiah Hall is another prestigious auditorium that is witnessing a change in audience profile. "Our audience would comprise middle-aged people.u00a0 However over the past few days we have observed many young people coming and watching plays," said Srinivas Murthy, sound engineer at the hall.

He is not sure the lack of Bollywood releases is the reason.

Chris Avinash, entertainment director for a private theatre space in Indiranagar, said, "Theatre has a niche audience. A lot of fan following and awe are associated with Bollywood. Avid Bollywood fans will probably watch television instead of theatre."

He believes if there are no Bollywood releases for a long time, theatre just might gain.

Wassup? Plays, such as this one at the Ranga Shankara, are attracting younger audience file pic Read More Read Next Story And home movies come alive› Trending Stories Latest Photos Latest Videos Latest Web Stories ADVERTISEMENT Ganeshotsav 2026 View Details ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT