Thanks to SHGs, Asifabad’s first digital theatre comes to life

Even though Telangana loves its movies, the residents of Asifabad, the district headquarters of Kumurambheem Asifabad, have been living without a cinema theatre for all this while.
The exterior and interior (inset) areas of the digital mini-theatre company at Asifabad.
The exterior and interior (inset) areas of the digital mini-theatre company at Asifabad.

ADILABAD: Even though Telangana loves its movies, the residents of Asifabad, the district headquarters of Kumurambheem Asifabad, have been living without a cinema theatre for all this while. It would be pretty common to find hordes of cine lovers travelling to Mancherial or Adilabad to catch the latest flick on Fridays. However, the scene was sharply different this week as the first theatre, Radheshyam, was launched at Asifabad on Tuesday.

In a joint collaboration, the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) and Society for Elimination of Rural Poverty (SERP) with the help of women-run self-help groups (SHGs) came together to establish the first cinema theatre in the district.

Only Rs 50 Lakh investment

Though private theatre management companies establish a unit at Rs 20 crore, a digital mini-theatre company, Picture Time, has been able to set up a theatre with seating for 120 people at only Rs 50 lakh. For this, the SHGs have invested Rs 30 lakh, while Picture Time has invested the remaining amount.

Picture Time staffers will maintain the equipment and impart training to the SHG members for a few months. After that, the SHGs will take over the entire operations. With a blockbuster opening and constant patronage from residents, the theatre management has already planned to increase the shows to five from Sunday.

Speaking to Express, DRDA Assistant Project Officer B Srinivas says one acre of land was allotted for theatre. He adds that such mobile theatres operate in remote areas such as Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh.
This idea came through after Panchayat Raj and Rural Development Secretary Sandeep Kumar Sultania directed officials to find ways to generate a monthly income of Rs 15,000 for 8,500 SHGs in the district.

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