Entertainment - Movie viewing the yesteryear way

BANGALORE: The magic of watching black and white movies in the bygone eras, sans the buttered popcorn, the Mexican tacos, the plush push-and-lie-down chairs or sipping cool drinks out of straw-punctured plastic cups, is turning into a refreshingly pleasant experience for scores of movie buffs at the Innovative Talkies, here.

The `Touring Talkies', as the cinema houses, are endearingly referred in rural areas, is a novel experiment, launched by the Innovative Film City, aiming at capturing the magic of yesteryear and providing the next-gen movie audience an experience of watching films before the multiplex boom.

"This is the concept that prevailed before our theatres and multiplex even took shape, when digital/dolby were unknown", says CMD, Innovative Studios Pvt Ltd, Saravana Prasad.

Stepping into `tent theatre' as they were referred is an anachronistic experience as mud-walled theatre with thatched roofing and doorways and low bamboo-supported wooden framework welcomes visitors. Buntings arranged in rows and a board with incredible low ticket prices painted greets the eye.

Once inside, the magic of the post-1925 era begins. A bare mud ground arrangement for the masses welcomes those light on the pocket. "The concept of the third class seating arrangement, called the Gandhi seats, has been picked up from the theatres of yore in rural villages," says Prasad.

Straw-brown benches forms the next line of seating arrangement (the second class seats). The wooden benches were in those days meant for those who could afford a slightly "higher" priced ticket.