Hyderabad: No closure of cinema halls says Talasani Srinivas Yadav

Hyderabad: There is no question of lockdown or closing cinema halls or malls for the present though Telangana State is battling a second wave of Covid-19, according to Minister for Cinematography Talasani Srinivas Yadav.

The minister said the Telugu cinema industry has already suffered badly because of corona last year. He said if the cinema halls were closed or restrictions imposed on shooting of films, thousands of workers like technicians, light boys and small time artistes would suffer.

The State Government on Wednesday announced the closure of educational institutions in the State after the surge of Covid-19 positive cases. This had led to speculations that the government might impose some restrictions on cinema halls and may even go in for night curfew.

The minister asked people not to believe such speculations which have been making rounds on social media. He said the government would take care of the interests of the cinema industry.

The minister, however, made it clear that all cinema halls should follow the health protocols like sanitisation of the theatres, making hand sanitisers available, checking of body temperature before allowing cine-goers into the theatre, ensuring wearing of masks and maintaining physical distancing.