Anna Theatre: another cinema landmark in Chennai bites the dust
This article is a nostalgic tribute to Anna Theatre, a unique standalone cinema in Chennai, which has recently been demolished. It reminisces about the theatre's role in the city's film culture, particularly its niche for smaller films amidst the larger cinema complexes of Mount Road.
Why it matters
The demolition of Anna Theatre signifies the ongoing transformation of urban landscapes and the decline of traditional single-screen cinemas in India. This reflects broader changes in entertainment consumption and real estate development, representing a cultural loss for many.
Mount Road for the nostalgic, and Anna Salai for those rooted in the present, is the spine that holds Chennai together. And as the metropolis evolved, the arterial road witnessed many changes.
Fresh edifices sprung up, old buildings became rubble, and in this churn, Anna Theatre too has recently bit the dust. In the Madras of the 1980s, there were many theatre complexes, as they were called then, unlike the multiplexes that roll off our tongues.
The Mount Road behemoths were Devi, Sathyam, Anand, Safire, to name a few. All of them had a blend of big screens and mini-versions like Devi Kala or Little Anand. There were standalone screens too, like Alankar and Wellington, but Anna was unique.
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