Too many turn up at 'The Social Network' screening, leading to chaos at MAMI fest

The Social Network, the latest film by Hollywood director David Fincher, was supposed to be the USP of the Mumbai Film Festival (MFF), oganised by the Mumbai Academy of Moving Image (MAMI). But that very aspect turned out to be a nightmare for the organisers, as more than 500 people turned up for the screening at a hall of PVR cinemas at Juhu that could seat only 282 people.

As the 282 people trooped in (or actually lesser, as the last two rows were reserved and had a few empty seats, irking many in the audience), the organisers closed the doors, leaving the people outside fuming. A few people who did manage to make it through and didn't get seats demanded that the people outside be let in.

However, with the venue having strict rules about not letting people sit along the aisle (for emergency reasons) it refused to let the people in and started the film. However, in an amazing act of solidarity, the audience seated inside the auditorium objected to the people outside not being able to watch the film.

“This is not how people are treated at a film festival,” screamed someone in the audience, while another remarked that they should have shown the most anticipated film of the festival in an auditorium, which could accommodate more people, or held more shows of the film. As the theatre officials refused to relent, the crowd started booing and shouting, 'Stop!' while those seated on the last row blocked the film's projection with, incidentally, the festival newsletter.

Finally, the organisers had to give in, allowing those waiting outside to get inside and watch the film from the aisles. Srinivasan Narayanan, the festival director, said, “All auditoriums have a strict rule for not letting people sit along the aisle as it could lead to a stampede in emergency situations. However, given the sentiments in this particular case, a few people were allowed to sit along the aisle. But almost 100 people had to be turned away.”

Narayanan said that the occurrence did not blemish the festival's reputation in any way, as the best film festivals around the world - like Cannes and Berlin - had to turn people away from screenings where more people than the seating allows turned up. He also ruled out the possibility of more screenings of the film at the festival for those who couldn't watch it.

For those who did manage to watch The Social Network eventually, the effort was worth it. The audience watched the film, started much beyond the scheduled time due to the commotion, and sat stunned as the Aaron Sorkin-written film about the birth of the social networking website, Facebook, unfolded before them. The ovation the film received in the end was testimony to the film rightly being the USP of the festival.