Assembly Rooms Theatre, the oldest cinema hall in Tamil Nadu’s Udhagamandalam, recently screened over 20 Tamil movies that were filmed in the hill town of Ooty as part of the bicentennial celebrations of the city.
Given that it was founded more than a century ago, the theatre is among the oldest in the area. Though the region of Tamil Nadu is well-known for its tourism, Ooty is the first spot that comes to mind when one thinks about mountain tourism, yet there are only two movie theatres in the ‘hill city’.
The Assembly Rooms Theatre, which were established by the British emperors, was one of the most significant of them. Reportedly, this theatre has been operating for more than 100 years. Moreover, the materials used in the theater in its early days are on display for the public. In this instance, Radhakrishnan, the manager of the theatre, spoke exclusively to News18 about the cinema hall’s history. According to him, “Assembly Rooms is not a for-profit movie theatre. Willington, the governor of Madras Province, and his wife constructed the Assembly Rooms Theatre in 1923 to house cultural events,” he added. Further he noted, a trust was established for the cultural purpose and entrusted to the residents of Ooty.
“At first, stage plays were performed here in the Assembly Rooms, while it was then transformed into a theatre to watch films. Following that, films and short films were screened. Despite political figures allowed to visit the theatre to watch films, they were denied to opt to hold political gatherings in the Hall,” the manager claimed.
Further, recalling the evolution of the Cinema Hall, Radhakrishnan stated, “When talkies replaced silent films, full-time cinema evolved into theatre and the majority of the films were in English. Later, Tamil films began to play its role gradually. There is evidence that a Tamil movie called Chinthamani was screened here in the 1930s,” he said. According to him, a German-made analogue projector was used to show films from 1954 to 2015. After the global discontinuation of film reel production, everyone switched to digital and so this projector is not used in the theatre. Currently, 2D digital projection system is used here, as stated by Radhakrishnan.
Furthermore, “Dilip Kumar, an Indian actor, used to visit the Assembly Rooms Theatre on the days when he was filming in Ooty. Eventually, Amaravati, the debut film of Tamil actor Ajith Kumar, was filmed in Ooty. Adding to this, from late Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, CN Annadurai to the late Tamil Star and Politician MGR had visited the Assembly Hall,” Radhakrishnan noted.
“I’m a huge fan of actor Kamal Haasan and I came to Assembly Rooms Theatre to watch his film today,” said Mohammed Rafik, a resident of Coimbatore. “Even though I reside in Coimbatore, my hometown is Ooty, and even as a little child, I enjoyed going to the Assembly Rooms Theatre. Moreover, I’m pleased that it is being properly maintained,” he continued.
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