Salman Khan effect is Rs 15 lakh in MP

MP govt asked to take steps against protestors

Stung by a loss of approximately Rs 15 lakh due to a recent protest against Salman Khan's alleged links with the underworld, cinema owners have asked the MP government to take steps against protesters, in the absence of which they would go on an indefinite strike.

"We have withdrawn the proposed indefinite strike from Monday on the assurance of Chief Minister Babulal Gaur," said Jitendra Jain, an office-bearer of the Central Circuit Cine Association, told Business Standard in Bhopal.

The Raj, Sargam, and Sangam in Bhopal, which were to screen the film Maine Pyar Kyon Kiya, starring Salman Khan, and other 15 theatres in Indore, Ujjain, Harda and Khnadwa and Gwalior, observed a two-day strike on July 15 and 16 in protest against hooliganism.

Saffron activists reportedly stormed various cinema halls in the state and shouted "traitor" in protest last week against Salman Khan.

As many as 350 theatres are there in Madhya Pradesh (excluding Mahakaushal and Chhattisgarh), which are already struggling to survive due to heavy taxes, video piracy, and the entry of cable operators.

"The business has been on the decline since 1990, when protesters storm the Bharat Cinema in Bhopal against the movie "Khalnayak". Later, Roza, Gadar, Fire and other movies have attracted protest," said a theatre owner in Bhopal. This, they feel, is an easy way to earn them publicity.

According to the commercial tax department, the entertainment tax collection dipped from Rs 20.10 crore in 2002-03 to Rs 14.22 crore this year, due to bandhs and frequent protests.

There are more than 15 distributors in Indore, who hire cinema halls in the state at Rs 15,000-60,000 per week, depending upon the film and its publicity. "A new release fetches a business of Rs 50,000 to Rs 2 lakh per day in Bhopal in each cinema," said Jain.

The association's office bearers told Business Standard the "state government had denied support to the cinema owners and had asked them to make their own security arrangements".

Police sources have said enough security arrangements have been made at all cinema halls. However, the frequency of the moviegoers remained low all across the state.