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losure of many public cinema houses in Rawalpindi and Islamabad means that the twin cities now have little to offer in the way of entertainment, to their residents, especially those belonging to the working class.
Recently, the Rawalpindi administration razed Rose cinema, a pre-Partition landmark big screen in Raja Bazaar. A commercial plaza may be constructed in its place.
The demolished cinema house was established in 1919. It was later taken over by the Rawalpindi administration. It was then put on lease that expired in 1967 and was never renewed.
In recent days the wooden floor and abandoned ticket counter of the cinema house had belied its past glory. Now, the emptiness of the plot is unnerving. A sad thought sinks in; instead of showing pictures, the cinema now only exists in old pictures.
Raja Dilnawaz, an old man who had watched movies in the cinema in his youth, shared his memories with TNS. “Yes, we used to visit the Rose cinema,” he said. “Over time, things have changed. Entertainment is now confined to mobile screens.”
Rawalpindi Municipal Corporation chief Imran Ali said that a competent court had allowed the municipal corporation to demolish the building. “The place was in illegal possession. The structure had been declared dangerous and dilapidated by an official committee a few years ago,” he said. “The city administration aims to build a commercial plaza here with a large parking facility.”
Old cinema houses are fast being converted to commercial plazas or used by the administration for other purposes. Some cinema houses have also been turned into theatres, hosting live stage shows. A cinema house next to a public hospital was converted to a healthcare facility for patients.
“We have hardly a recreational spaces left that is awami [accessible to all]. Low-cost entertainment is, sadly, not a priority here,” said Waqar Hussain, a resident of Islamabad. “We’re witnessing the remains of an entire urban culture. We’re also at risk of losing our history to commercialisation,” he said.
Novelty Cinema in Kashmiri Bazaar has been demolished. Gulistan cinema has become a commercial entity. Moti Mahal, Odeon and Plaza cinemas have also been demolished. Rose cinema is the latest addition to this list.
The lack of venues that promote low-cost entertainment is not limited to Rawalpindi. There is no public cinema house in the capital city too. Once a public cinema house, Melody, sis now a food street. In Lahore, many cinemas have been razed. These include Moonlight and Plaza. Many cinemas have been converted to stage shows and theaters running live dance shows.
“We have hardly a recreational space left that is awami [accessible to all]. Low-cost entertainment is, sadly, not a priority here,” said Waqar Hussain, a resident of Islamabad. “We’re witnessing the remains of an entire urban culture. We’re also at risk of losing our history to commercialisation,” he said.
Hussain was of the view that the new trend of setting up cinemas in commercial plazas and buildings with tickets that cost a fortune was fundamentally exclusionary. “We are gatekeeping spaces along class lines. This means we have barred the lower middle class and working class from recreational spaces,” he said.
“The government and the city administration should prioritise our entertainment,” he said, “Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi is doing a lot of development work in the capital. Imagine how the city would change if we had a public cinema house that was affordable and open to all.”
The writer is a staff member. He can be reached at vaqargillanigmail.com.