Saturday 07 / September / 2024
Muscat: Get ready to grab your box of popcorn or a packet of chips with your favourite drink. Relive the joy of watching a movie at the iconic Ruwi Cinema or Shatti Qurum theatre.
Yes, you heard it right!
Months after the two theatres were among the five halls where screening had stopped, movie buffs in the Sultanate of Oman will soon be able to enjoy watching movies at these two theatres.
Though a final date of re-opening of these theatres, which have three screens each, has not been finalised, Times of Oman expects that Ruwi and Shatti Qurum cinema halls will be up running, in all likelihood, soon after Eid Al Adha holidays.
In an exclusive interview, P Chandrasekr, Group General Manager, Jawad Sultan Group, said: “We are delighted to say that Jawad Sultan Group is returning to cinema business. To start with, we will reopen the iconic Ruwi Cinema and Shatti Qurum Cinema in the next two-three months. We had exited the cinema business in 2016 and concurrently leased our 4 properties to VOX management for running their cinema operations.
“Following the termination of the lease arrangement between both the parties by mutual agreement, our owners gave a lot of thought and have decided to return to the business, which they are credited to be pioneers in the Sultanate of Oman.”
It may be mentioned that following the end of the agreement between VOX and Jawad Sultan Group, 4 cinema locations - Ruwi, Shatti Qurum, Sur and Sohar – had closed down. In addition, VOX also closed their cinemas in the Panorama Mall location.
Chandrasekr said: “To start with, we will focus our energy on the opening of Ruwi and Shatti Qurum. We have moved out of Sohar as the property has been sold while we will give a pause to Sur operations. We have now three locations and will begin with two places.
“The cinema market has transformed in recent times with a tremendous competition given by movies on OTT platforms. Besides, the industry was hit badly by the pandemic for a couple of years and is now recovering in the post-pandemic era.”
Chandrasekr was, however, upbeat and said that “things are looking good ahead.”
He credited the euphoric response to the recent achievements of Indian movies at the Oscars along with the production of high-quality Hollywood movies and Indian movies in different languages and Bollywood films.
The senior official at the Jawad Sultan Group said: “We know that we will face good competition from four other operators, but we will bank on our strong skill sets and offer the best experience for customers.
“We will also no longer be called City Cinema and will return with a new name. Customer-oriented service will be our top priority at both the venues, be it sound and projection systems or attractive and varied offers.”
Chandrasekr, who has been closely following the industry for the past decade, said: “We are mindful of market situations and have assessed the market. We are re-entering a business that we were pioneers in and we are moving with cautious optimism.
“We are going ahead with Ruwi and Shatti Qurum as both the halls were doing reasonably well even before we had entered a deal with VOX in 2016.”
Following the decision by Jawad Sultan Group to re-enter as cinema operators in Oman, the number of operators in the Sultanate have risen to five with VOX, Cinepolis, Novo and WOW, being the other operators.
Around 80 screens in Oman
Despite halls in Sohar, Sur and Panorama Mall closed, the Sultanate of Oman has around 80 screens, a number that Chandrasekr believes is “excess to the requirement”.
“We will have a total of six screens with three each in Ruwi and Shatti Qurum. We are thankful to movie buffs in Oman for showering love, encouragement and support to us for the past many years,” he said.
Recalling the journey of cinema in Oman, Chandrasekr said that Jawad Sultan Group began its operations in Ruwi in 1978 when they launched Al Nasr Cinema, which was later named City Cinema.
He said: “Prior to Al Nasr, there had been a small set-up near the main Ruwi Grand Mosque to show movies since 1973. But, Al Nasr was the first full-fledged cinema hall and the first movie screened in 1978 was the Raj Khosla-directed 1969 movie Do Raaste with Rajesh Khanna and Mumtaz.”
Entertainment industry
The Jawad Sultan Group top official said that “entertainment industry has a lot of scope in Oman, but one has to tread with a lot of caution in present times.”
He said: “Technology has taken over and there is an overlap between education and entertainment. There is convergence happening in this industry but not in other forms of media. We will try to bring the latest technology once we start our operations, and we are committed to finding ways to improve our offerings for customers.”
Chandrasekr admitted that Netflix and other OTT platforms have cut into the market of cinema movie goers.
“However, there is still a lot that cinema halls could offer and the experience of watching a movie in a hall is something different, and we will strive to make it more enjoyable.”
Soon after closing down five theatres last year, a spokesperson for Majid Al Futtaim Leisure, Entertainment & Cinemas that manages VOX Cinemas in Oman, said: “As a responsible business focused on long-term sustainable growth, we have identified opportunities to accelerate our progress and deploy our capital more efficiently. As such, we will be closing a number of our older and low-performing VOX Cinemas sites.”
