By A Staff Reporter

Kathmandu, Mar. 22 : When every sector, which had remained closed for over nine months because of COVID-19 lockdown, has already returned to their normalcy, cinema theatres are still struggling for their revival.
Restaurants, business hub, zoo, museums and other sectors are running smoothly with increasing number of visitors.

However, cinema halls are still in limbo even about three months after they were opened. They are still unable to lure the movie-goers.

Roshan Adiga, Chief Executive Officer of Quest Entertainment, said that the number of audience is gradually increasing. However, the seat occupancy has not been more than 10 to 12 percent whereas 20 to 25 percent occupancy is needed to sustain a hall.

Now in the QFX cinema halls, Bollywood films ‘Mumbai Saga’, ‘Roohi’ and Hollywood movie ‘Raya and the Last Dargon’ and ‘1917’ are being screened.

After the resumption of the cinema theatres from December 25 last year, veteran actor Shiva Shrestha’s film “Euta Yesto Prem Kahani” and Kimat Gurung’s “Gorkhe” were released in the halls, however, both the films flopped.

Adiga said the two Nepali movies were unable to bring audience to the hall in lack of good contents. Film distributor Gopal Kaji Kayastha also said that Nepali cinema theatres are operating sluggishly even after the full resumption of other sectors.

In order to entice the audience to the Nepali cinema halls, the movie theaters are desperately waiting for the big Bollywood star-starred films, he added.

Big budget Nepali film producers are also waiting for the release of Bollywood films to release their films as they also believe that Bollywood films can enthrall the audience to the hall, added Kayastha.