Piccadily Theatre makes comeback as swanky multiplex
The year 2009 was a turning point.
3 min read
The year 2009 was a turning point. A landmark was razed to the ground and the foundations were laid for the next generation of cine-goers and shoppers. One of the top cinemas of its time,Piccadily Theatre in Sector 34,has finally risen from the ashes and stands tall as the Piccadily Square. The roads to it bear a familiar feel. With every turn unfolds an old memory,washed in Eastman colour,strung in timeless songs,drowned in the roar of the applause and whistles,doused in the oil-soaked smells of samosa,popcorn and Coca Cola – Piccadilys silver screen had an enviable charm in its single days.
A grand opening saw Shakti Samantas film Charitraheen come to life on its screen in 1974. The crowds couldnt get enough of Sanjeev Kumar and Sharmila Tagore,reminisces its chairman,Sham Sunder Sharma. As opposed to DT City Centre,Fun Cinemas and Centra Mall,the Piccadily Square is the first mall to come up within the city. The Jagat and KC malls are still awaited. The new compound strikes out with its filmi poster – Return of the Tricity Star.
A straight lined contemporary structure,it houses three auditoriums and can hold a crowd of 955 in total. The vacant ground and first floor shall soon be buzzing with shops and exclusive brands outlets,food court and restaurants. The top floor has a gym and a swimming pool,informs the general manager,Vineet Sablok.
Sharma,who has retained all the old staff in the cinemas and his resorts,recently opened a single screen cinema in Manali too. While more escalators could have been installed,the parking woes have been addressed with a three level basement parking and one on the ground exclusively for Piccadily Square. We ran Hum Aapke Hain Kaun for one whole year here,and we were the first to install the Bose system during our renovations in 1996. That year we ran James Camerons Titanic,and for the first time,Punjab saw a collection of Rs 32 lakh from a Hollywood film,the highest ever, tells Sharma. I started my career with Piccadily in 96,and my team set up the first computerised ticketing system in this theatre in the city, recalls Rajiv Minhas,who has joined back as Head,Cinema Operations.
Joginder Singh,who handles the canteen area,remembers the films that attained blockbuster status in this theatre. Mohabbatein,Fanaa,Kuch Kuch Hota Hai,Kareeb,Kal Ho Na Ho,Dil To Pagal Hai,Kaal…people would line up hours in advance and book! Weve celebrated silver,golden jubilees here, says Singh adding about how Abhishek Bachchan and Kareena Kapoor came here to promote Refugee. The last film to run on the single screen was Singh is King.
Come September 28,and Piccadily Square will open to the public with films OMG,Sky Fall,Pinky Mogeywali and Kamaal Dhamaal.
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