[Reader-list] First Posting

Shahnawaz Khan fsrnkashmir at gmail.com
Thu Mar 22 21:07:11 IST 2007


*Entertainment Ghosts in Srinagar*





Hi everybody,



This is my first posting. My name is Shahnawaz Khan,

and not Mohd Shahnawaz Khan as it has appeared on the SARAI.

I am a journalist based in Srinagar. Associated with KashmirNewz.com and the
US based Free Speech   Radio News (Pacifica Radio Network)





As a SARAI fellow I will be doing a study titled, *Entertainment ghosts in *
*Srinagar**: A tale of cinema halls in the city *

* *

Cinema halls in Srinagar present a sorry tale since they came first under
attack, in 1989, right with the outbreak of armed insurgency in Jammu and
Kashmir.

Radical militant groups were quick to ban the cinema halls, which they saw
as promoters of obscenity in the region.



With the show business off, the out of business cinema halls became homes to
the contingents of para military forces that arrived in unimaginable numbers
to fight the insurgency.



Some halls like the Palladium in the heart of Srinagar fell to arson. The
remains of the hall greet the visitors to the city even today telling the
tale of its ilk.



17 years into the insurgency a lot of things have changed in Kashmir. A lot
of things that went off the line came back on rails in spite of the
insurgency.

The education system in Kashmir, for example shot back form a temporary
phase of anarchy in early nineties to get back in line.



The cable television was introduced during the insurgency. Cable television
had hiccups many a times. Radical outfits banned forced their closure many
times but system survived and even grew, as there are today even a few local
cable channels that go on to beam current affairs too. The hiccups are still
there.



But for the cinema halls it has been almost a closed chapter. Out of the
nine odd cinema halls in Srinagar only one is operational today. Four of
these are occupied by the Central Reserve Police Force. The centrally
located Palladium Cinema overlooking the historical Ghanta Ghar (Clock
tower) stands like a ghost in Lal Chowk area reflecting the tale of its ilk.






Cinema owners did make attempts at reopening. With claims of normalcy
sounded by successive governments, Broadway cinema located in the high
security zone of Sonwar was the first to reopen in 1997. For some years the
Boradway was more or less a successful reopening story and others tried to
follow. Like the Neelam cinema which is operational even today.

For some reasons the Broadway was closed again in 2005. Stringent security
measures and a high priced insured ticked attracted little customers. Neelam
though operational even today hasn't even undergone renovation. The shows
attract very few customers and at times the shows are abandoned for want of
customers.



Understandably the cinema relies on older or cheaper films. No fresh
premiers.

One more halls that tried to resume business is the centrally located *Regal
*.

On the first day of its reopening attempt, the second show  had to be
abandoned after a grenade attack.



The other halls are either occupied by the troops, and have acted also as
interrogations centres. For some people these halls occupied by troops sent
shivers down the spine. For they signify the terror they have to face.



A few others have changed business making the future of cinema bleaker in
Kashmir.







 Ends

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