GOING TO THE MOVIES

Star Wars: The Force Awakens a must see on the big screen and as it won't be showing on my return from travels I decide to see it in Delhi. Two weeks since release and already in this market it is slowing down. It was only showing once today, 11:50am. Always fun locating places in Delhi. The movie cinema was only a five stop metro ride ( about 6kms ) and I got down at the one the cinema was named after and walked, all the way to the next metro stop, where it was located. Didn't look like that on imaps, so learnt something.

Reached the INOX Patel Nagar Cinema in time, purchased the ticket, Rs180 - divided into admission fee 107.15, tax 42.05 then 3D charge 21.40 and tax on that 8.60. Wonder what the charges in Australia would look like if broken down the same way.

Entry, like in most public areas now in India, is through security and I caused a stir because I was carrying a camera. After much tooing, froing and natter from security to manager to bigger manager it was decided the easiest thing was to take the battery out of the camera, to be returned upon exit.

So best laid plans, arrived in cinema 3 just as the movie was starting and it was almost pitch. Fumbled my way half way up the seat rows and into the middle before my eyes adjusted and put the 3D specs on.

The cinema is very clean and has comfortable seats with a tendency to recline and I was not sure whether this was a feature of not. There were only a dozen or so in the movie, so plenty of space, with a sound system to blow your ears off.

Thoroughly enjoying the movie when the house lights come up and the movie stops mid scene. It's intermission. Yes, that is right, forced fun time. Most get up and walk out, I assume for bathroom and refreshment. For those of us remaining the food venders come to the seats and ask what we want, menu in hand, just in case you changed your mind.

The screen comes to life again and across the screen messages beam

-  beware of any articles under seats that may be bombs

- look around the people either side as they may be terrorists

- in case of fire ring .... Not where and how to exit the place

Then the advertising starts for the remainder of the break before arbitrarily, I'm sure, the movie restarts. Not everyone has yet returned and there cannot have been a feeding frenzy with so few people.

Credits start to roll and there is a scurry from seats with everyone ushered out the emergency exit stairs.  Here you are out of the building walking down flights of stairs into sweepers scraping the overnight pigeon waste off the steps, past cats obviously hunting rats in the debris until the entrance is found again. I reclaim my battery from totally different security personnel who were well aware. He draw was pulled open and one battery deposited into my hand. What the security check did not see was a spare battery being carried and an iPad. My wealth is not to be augmented from pirating the movie obviously plus I'm pretty sure specialist 3D camera gear would be needed.