An usher in protective gear checks the seats before customers enter the auditorium at the PVR Icon cinema, at DLF Promenade Mall, in New Delhi.
Millions of people in movie-mad India rushed to the theatres across the country on Thursday after they reopened following a seven-month Covid-19-induced halt.
The Central government has allowed the states to reopen cinema halls. But they must not be in the Covid-19 containment zones and should take specific measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. The resumption of screening will be propitious for big-ticket Bollywood movies.
Said avid fan Hema Chockalingam, who intends to hit the multiplex in the New Delhi suburb of Noida with a group of girlfriends this weekend: "I'm desperate for the movie-hall experience. Watching streamed content is no match for the real thing. I'm reclaiming my old life."