Changing culture of movie-watching
The closure of the historic Shanti cinema in Hyderabad reflects a broader shift in Indian movie-watching habits as single-screen theaters decline in favor of multiplexes and OTT streaming platforms. While the business model is changing, the cultural appetite for the theatrical experience remains strong.
Why it matters
It highlights the tension between traditional cultural spaces and the digital transformation of the entertainment industry in urban India.
The projector at Shanti 70MM in Hyderabad’s Narayanguda has been silent for six years, but cinema has not entirely left the building. This Ganesh Chaturthi , rows of idols stood where moviegoers once queued for tickets, while the theatre’s familiar facade looked down on a space that had once seen giant cut-outs, packed houses and whistles for star entrances.
Opened in 1969, Shanti became one of Hyderabad’s best-known single screens. N.T. Rama Rao’s Daana Veera Soora Karna ran there for 250 days in 1977. But after COVID-19 shut cinemas in 2020, Shanti never reopened. The management decided to close it permanently and use the premises as a godown.
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