Exhibitor Akshaye Rathi: We hope that the Maharashtra government will follow suit

The buzz in trade circles is that theatres in the state will reopen by August

On Tuesday, the Gujarat government announced a complete waiver of property tax for the owners of multiplexes, cinema halls and gyms from April 1, 2021 to March 31, 2022. Trade and exhibitor Akshaye Rathi informs that encouraged by the move, members of Multiplex Association of India (MAOI) met Balasaheb Thorat, Maharashtra's revenue minister, on Wednesday to urge that a similar relief be provided to the cinema owners in the state.

"We hope that the Maharashtra government will follow suit. The state contributes close to 30 per cent of the national box-office revenue. The sector needs to be protected by the state government. Besides exemption from property tax, they should charge us for electricity as per industry rates and not commercial rates.

Also Read: 'We need to rebuild the audience's habit of going to cinemas'

Additionally, the renewal of cinema license shouldn't be charged [this year], or the license should be extended," says Rathi as the exhibition sector reels under the second lockdown. In the 15 months since the first lockdown was imposed, cinemas in Maharashtra have been operational only for five months - from November 2020 to April 4, 2021 - with losses running into hundreds of crores. With the state gradually easing the lockdown restrictions, Rathi says that movie halls may be operational only by August.

Kunal Sawhney, senior vice president, Carnival Cinemas, says the meeting with Thorat comes months after the stakeholders had a virtual meeting with Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray. "The MAOI also discussed the electricity charges levied on us. The minimum charge is close to 20 per cent of our expenses. When we had met Uddhav Thackeray on video call, he was positive in his approach. I am confident the recent dialogue will give us a breather," he says.

Also Read: Salman Khan belongs to the big screen