Do mobile theatres spell curtains for Assamese cinema?
From correspondents in India, 10:30 AM IST Pathsala (Assam) – Assam’s travelling theatres are playing to packed audiences in both urban and rural areas despite jazzed up cinema complexes and cable television. About three years ago, the state produced about a dozen-odd Assamese language films annually. However, this has dwindled to naught with moviegoers growing scarce. With regional cinema in the doldrums, actors, musicians, directors and technicians found an alternative livelihood in the highly popular mobile theatres. The theatres, which belong to a tradition stretching back more than four centuries, have multiplied to over 30. ‘It would have been a silent death for hundreds of people involved in the Assamese film industry but for the mobile theatres,’ director Munna Ahmed told IANS. ‘Actors, musicians, directors and technicians are today earning more from mobile theatres than they did from films,’ he added. Like Ahmed, there are other filmmakers and actors who once ruled the silver
