**Bhubaneswar: ** It seems the moviegoers in Odisha are feeling the heat after the Government had banned Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes as the long queues are now only visible in banks and ATMs since Wednesday.
A few filmmakers have also postponed the release of their films as they were afraid that the ban on Rs 1000 and Rs 500 currency notes would keep the moviegoers from spending money on buying tickets.
Cinema halls in Bhubaneswar which usually witness good crowd were seen decline in the occupancy following the ban high-value denominations.
According to reports, the occupancy for the Asmit Patel and Ronit Roy-starrer ‘Dongri Ka Raja’ has dropped significantly at various theatres in the city.
“Now, it’s seen that people are busy and concerned about spending on their basic necessities like food and grocery items which has affected the entertainment badly. The impact of the ban is clearly visible as the revenue had slumped by 80 per cent following the order,” explained Rabindra Kumar Sahu, Manger of S-complex, which runs three film halls – Sriya, Swati and Stutee in capital city.
Currently, we are running two Odia films and a Hindi film but all of these films are failing woo the viewers due scarcity of cash in the market, Sahu added.
It is not only the film halls are getting affected the same also felt by the shopkeepers operating business in and around the theatres.
“Our business is almost zero now due to less money in the pockets of people to fulfil their needs. Most of the customers are bringing old Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes for exchange which we are not accepting as per the Government rule,” said Mahesh Rao, a shopkeeper near S-Complex.
On the other hand, PM Narendra Modi’s unexpected move decision to abolish Rs 500 and Rs 1000 rupee notes to curb the flow of black money received a widespread appreciation from the film celebrities.
“T 2435 – the new 2000 rs note is PINK in colour … the PINK effect ..!!” Amitabh Bachchan had wrote on his twitter handle.
Superstar Rajinikanth tweeted, “Hats off @narendramodi ji. New india is born #JaiHind.”
