Delhi’s nights in technicolor

Movies are no longer only weekend entertainment in Delhi. More Delhiites are watching late night movies on weekdays to take in that movie that they’ve been dying to see. Amitabh Vardhan, vice-president of operations, PVR Limited, says traffic for late night shows on weekdays has grown by 5 per cent in the last quarter. Rajat Kumar, vice president of marketing, DT Cinemas, which runs multiplexes in Gurgaon, says the industry as a whole has registered a jump of 15 per cent to 20 per cent over the past one year.

With weekend shows running to packed houses, more people are going to shows on weeknights. The upward trend has been noticeable since 2005. “In 2003, the traffic for this slot was negligible,” says Vardhan.

Generally, more people tend to go to cinemas during summer vacation. However, the late night trend spells a different story. People who go to late shows during the week are a mix of young media and IT professionals, working couples, and BPO workers.

Stressed lifestyles make them seek better entertainment options outside of their homes. “TV viewing is becoming ancillary to cinema. People no longer return home after a hard day’s work and sit in front of their TV sets until 1 am. They would rather go out, eat and watch a movie,” says Rajat Kumar, vice-president of marketing, DT Cinemas.

Multiplexes have an advantage over single screen halls, because they offer so much more than a movie. Food courts, bars, pubs and cinema halls under the same roof make a great entertainment package, says Kumar of DT Cinemas. A good line-up of movies is bound to draw lot more people out of their homes and into theatres, he adds.