Single-screen cinema halls in Telangana will not be screening movies from Friday (May 17) for two weeks owing to low footfall.
About 450 single-screen theatres will suspend operations for two weeks to curb losses due to poor patronage, according to a PTI report.
State film exhibitors association president Vijayender Reddy said the single-screen theatre owners individually took the decision to cancel screening movies from this week.
He noted that expenditure per day for theatre owners is to the tune of Rs 10,000 to Rs 12,000 in small towns and between Rs 15,000 and Rs 18,000 in Hyderabad. However, the revenue per day, especially in the case of small cinemas, is not even Rs 4,000.
According to him, the loss is about Rs 4,000 per day if the theatre is closed, but it can go up to about 6,000 if a film is screened with poor footfall.
Media reports say that the the shutdown of theatres is likely to be extended.
"The collections for recent films have gone from bad to worse and theatre business has become a risky proposition,” Deccan Chronicle quoted a film exhibiter as saying.
Some of the reasons attributed to poor turnout in theatres include the ongoing IPL season, summer heat and the Lok Sabha elections.
Reddy, however, said the theatre owners would be ready to screen films if any producers come forward and make an upfront payment as a business transaction. In such a scenario, the screening would continue if there is patronage.
There are no major films scheduled for release till June 15.