A report by PTI stated that the single screen theatre, located in central Delhi's Paharganj, was reeling under a financial crunch; so much so that it could not screen the latest Baahubali 2. Instead, Shiela's owners decided to down her shutters.
After Regal, another iconic single-screen theatre, Shiela, closed its curtains on Friday in the Capital. Beloved by her patrons Shiela had been screening Bollywood movies for 56 years.
A report by PTI stated that the single screen theatre, located in central Delhi's Paharganj, was reeling under a financial crunch; so much so that it could not screen the latest Baahubali 2. Instead, Shiela's owners decided to down her shutters.
Shiela had become popular in the Capital for being the first fully-air conditioned 70 mm single screen theatre. Serpentine queues outside the hall for movies were common and even today the Paharganj movie hall has been the centre-stage of many fond memories for Delhiites.
Some of Shiela's patrons mourned the loss of their favourite place to catch a film. Seventy-year-old AK Singal, said, "I remember watching Ben Kingsley's Gandhi at the theatre. The hall was packed with audience from all age groups and all of us came out emotional and more patriotic after watching the movie."
Singal was not alone. Many of Delhi's elders had something to say about Shiela. Saroj Sethi, 61, fondly recounted, "During those days having popcorns and cold drink while watching a movie were a luxury. My friends and I used to save our monthly pocket money to buy the same especially for an Amitabh Bachchan movie.
Speaking on the development, Shiela's owner Uday Kaushik said that they had been thinking about closing for some time now.
"We had been thinking of shutting down for some time. The latest blockbuster Baahubali 2 would have helped us get a crowd, but we could not get the rights to screen the movie, among many other theaters in the city," Kaushik told PTI.
—Input From Agencies
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