A piece of history, Mumbai’s iconic art deco Eros cinema rises like a phoenix
MUMBAI: It had stood like a colossus, symbolising with its distinctive V-shaped Art Deco façade, all that was good and great about their city for generations of Mumbaikars.
And so, when Eros cinema which stood so majestically between Churchgate station and Oval Maidan, had downed its shutters in 2017, many had believed it would be one more cherished Mumbai institution that would go the way of Wayside Inn, Strand Bookshop, Rhythm House, Café Naaz and Cafe Samovar.
After all, in a city where so much was changing in the name of rapid development, people had resigned themselves to losing one more jewel in their city’s crown.
This is why, a few months ago, when news began to percolate about the restoration of the iconic structure and its reopening with a world-class technological upgrade, making it the first standalone IMAX cinema in Mumbai, featuring a giant screen, laser-aligned speakers, a next-generation laser projection and a multi-channel sound system, there was much cause for celebration amongst movie-going audiences and city lovers alike.
Ironically, the White Knight who came to the rescue of this heritage property, happens to hail from Delhi, though the dapper Ajay Bijli, managing director, PVR INOX Limited prefers to call himself ‘an India person.’
Acknowledged as a visionary and game changer, as a young man of 20, Bijli took his family’s single cinema enterprise and converted it into an empire spanning 1,712 screens across 359 properties in 114 cities in India and Sri Lanka, making it the largest exhibitor in India and the fifth largest in the world.
When Bijli followed his passion for cinemas turning his back on the family’s legacy trucking business, to nurture the single-screen Priya cinema, in the early 90s, he had no indication that there would be so much growth in the sector. All he knew was that the business of movies and their exhibition had excited him like none other.
At that time, less than a handful of theatres in Delhi exhibited international movies and Bijli says he was inspired by Mumbai’s clutch of stately Sobo institutions, such as Metro, Regal and New Empire, with their glamorous interiors and newage technology, screening blockbusters such as The Sound of Music, Love Story and Mackenna’s Gold.
“I wanted to emulate them and screen the best of Hollywood at Priya, so I met the big studio bosses in Mumbai like 20th Century Fox and Warner Brothers and was directed by them to ‘go see Sterling cinema and what had been done with it, by installing Dolby Sound and fitting it out with great interiors.’ he says. “So off I went - and believe me I was like a kid in at Hamleys when I saw Sterling.” What followed was the renovation of Priya Cinema, with a Dolby Sound System, refurbished interiors and the screening of a slew of Hollywood movies which carved a niche for Bijli among movie-loving audiences. Serendipitously, around that time, he says the government of India announced the decontrolling of movie ticket prices along with a reduction in entertainment tax, which helped in propelling the cinema’s profits.
Then in 1995 an Australian media major, Village Roadshow, looking to expand its business into India, entered into a joint venture with Bijli, which led to the inception of Priya Village Roadshow (PVR).
But it has not been roses throughout. When Village Roadshow exited from the Indian market, Bijli decided to retain the name which had by then become synonymous with quality movie exhibitions in the country, aiming to expand to 50 screens across Hyderabad, Delhi, Bangalore, and Mumbai by 2001. But the September 11 attacks in the US impacted many businesses, leaving Ajay’s plans in disarray. Fortunately, in 2003 he secured funding of ₹80 crore from ICICI Ventures and the rest as they say is history.
Walking with Bijli through Eros’ iconic black and white marble floor, its distinctive circular lobby and elegant side staircases leading up to its sunroof, a wave of nostalgia has us in its thrall.
After all, who among us has not spent many a happy hour in the structure designed by architect Sohrabji Bhedwar, one of Mumbai’s leading Art Deco Men, on a commission in 1935 by businessman Shiavax Cawasji Cambata, the scion of a well-heeled Paris clan. Coincidentally, Parsis have been instrumental in Eros’ second coming too. Conservation architect Kirtida Unwalla, accompanied by Hafeez Contractor and Talati & Partners had been roped in to ensure that the building’s principal character wasn’t lost amidst its large-scale restoration. The team has managed to retain much of the building’s original features, such as its bas-relief circular columns, and iconic sunroof. The grand staircases have been redone with marble work and circular wooden handrails, while the octagonal elevators have been upgraded with automatic collapsible shutters. Now, the cinema is housed on the second floor of the building with the balconies making way for a retail space on the first floor.
Each city requires a different approach, Bijli tells me as we sit over a coffee in Eros’ foyer, while a screening of Dune 2 plays out on its giant screen inside. Listening to him speak on his favourite subject is a lesson in social anthropology. “Every city calls for a different sensibility and approach. For instance, food habits down south require a new approach to fabrics and carpeting; In Punjab, the legroom has to be augmented.”
Known to be meticulous in his eye for detail, even as we speak, Bijli suggests changes in Eros’ ticket counter placement to his team to further enhance the cinema experience.
It is obvious that restoring and augmenting Eros has been a passion project for him. After all, Mumbai is a city he loves and in a way, it is fitting that having been inspired to start his spectacular journey in the quality exhibition of movies by Sterling, he is paying back the compliment by bequeathing to Mumbai another quality cinema.
“Given it’s a restoration project and there were many restrictions, in all humility, I think we have an incredible project, with the best technology coupled with outstanding Art Deco interiors,” he says with pride. And so, in a happy instance of the good being retained and restored, even as it is upgraded, perhaps Eros Cinema, named after the Greek god of love, which first opened its doors to the public on February 10, 1938, might just become an example of how, if approached with similar sensitivity and care, Mumbai’s development can retain past glory even as it aspires to cutting edge change.