First upscale cinema opens on 20th

Lahore:First upscale cinema opens in Defence on 20th

EMANUEL SARFRAZ
LAHORE - The first state-of-the-art cinema in line with the international standards would open uptown in the DHA’s R Block this month on 20th.
Mandviwalla Entertainment Co has completed the project of converting the DHA auditorium into cinema in six months time. The company has a five-year-contract to run the cinema, which would continue to be multipurpose use. The functions that used to be held in the auditorium would continue as usual as the screen is retractable and can be rolled up. The project has been completed at a cost of Rs 19 million. The auditorium, whose name has not been changed, hopes to provide families and young people with the ambience and experience of cinema going that is available internationally.
The auditorium has capacity of 450 seats, which have been imported from China. “The cinema hall has two surround sound systems - DTS and Dolby Digital while the projection equipment has been bought from Kinoton, Germany. Kinoton is one of the biggest manufacturers of professional film projection technology worldwide and is known for its quality products,” Chief Executive of Mandviwalla Entertainment Nadeem Mandviwalla said while talking to The Nation on Sunday evening. Currently only the Empire Cinema on McLeod Road has Dolby Digital system while others mostly have DTS.
Mandviwalla said the cinema would be the first to introduce electronic ticketing (computerised) in the country. “You can compare the facilities in the cinema to any other in the world. This kind of cinema is everywhere in the world but it was not available here in Pakistan.
“The Pakistani cinema industry would soon bounce back. This is the first step towards the revival of industry. The change would soon come at other places also. People like elsewhere in the world want to go to cinemas for entertainment. It is not just the movie but the whole experience of watching a movie in a theatre that continues to attract people to cinemas. The families that had stopped going to cinemas would definitely go for the silver screen if they are provided with a good environment,” Mandviwalla was of the view.
The DHA auditorium has been transformed into a cinema keeping in view the international standards. For example the comfortable chairs have cup holders for soft drinks and popcorn. The step lights have also been provided. Initially the ticket would be Rs 250 per person. But it may vary in the future depending on the popularity of movie or late night shows that may have tickets lesser in amount. The electronic ticketing means that people would be able to identify the vacant seats and would select from among them. The first movie to be shown in the DHA cinema would be Hollywood blockbuster ‘Live Free or Die Hard - Die Hard 4.0’ starring action hero Bruce Willis. Shoaib Mansoor’s ‘Khuda Kay Liyae’ may also be released along with ‘Die Hard’. If both the movies come up for exhibition the first two shows beginning at 3pm would be of the Urdu flick.