By Our Special Correspondent
Daijiworld Media Network - Panaji
Panaji, Jul 13: The historical monument in the field of Indian Cinema is fearing to face oblivion.
The first ever cinema theatre on Western coast constructed seventy years back is struggling for its existence with the Panaji’s civic body wanting to get back the land allotted to it through a lease.
Cine National, the first movie theatre on the entire west coast, barring Mumbai region, is likely to face axe as the period for the lease has expired and local municipal corporation wants the land to be reverted back.
“We strongly suspect that there is a pressure from the builders’ lobby who wants this land for constructing mall,” Mohan Rao, partner, Rao and Company, said.
The theatre was constructed in 1934, when the screening of movies was restricted only to some makeshift places. In that era, Goa was under Portuguese regime and silent movies ruled the screen.
The land which was earlier given on concession to the company during portuguse rule was leased out through a fresh agreement in 1975, years after Goa was liberated.
Rao and Company’s tryst with movies is dated back to 1920, when they had a small talkies in the name of Eden Cinema in the Panaji city itself. In the era of silent movies, Eden Cinema used to have live music with tabla and harmonium to make livelier the scenes.
“We went for a full-fledged theatre only when Portuguese government encouraged for such a project,” Rao stated.
The business was shifted to new premises in 1934 making it the first ever theatre on the entire western coast except Mumbai.
“The entire building was put in place spending Rs 98,000 in Portuguese regime. For that my father had to borrow money from many places,” he said.
“The main clientele was the Portuguese families who used to watch English movies. The film prints were brought from Mumbai. The ticket was six anas, tweleve anas and for balcony it was Re one,” Rao remembers.
The theatre then was named as Cine Tiatro Nacional and had a stage where even local drama form of tiatres and other programmes were performed.
After India’s independence Marathi and Hindi movies were hot favourites of the local people.
After Goa liberation, the theatre was named as Cine National.
Rao’s family now is ready to invest in this theatre with historical importance. “But everything is uncertain. We are not sure whether we would retain the building with us or corporation of city of panaji (CCP) will ask us to vacate. How can we gamble,” he said.
The agreement with CCP has expired on November 24, 2005 and the company is waiting for the decision from the corporation.