Krishnaveni Theatre gets renovated to Krishnaveni Cinemas

09 Feb 2022 CW Team

The renovation of Chennai’s Krishnaveni Theatre to Krishnaveni Cinemas arrives at a time when single-screen theatres across the country are shutting operations. Krishnaveni Cinemas now boasts a new facade. The auditorium has an upgraded projector and sound system, having a capacity of 490-seats.

Krishnaveni Theatre in Chennai was not just an old theatre but the last surviving remnant of a bygone era.The poor maintenance and a lacklustre effort to rebuild and recoup contributed to the theatre-going to ruins was a cut-throat business. It resulted in a three-year renovation, which started in 2018 and was named Krishnaveni Cinemas.

The current owner of the theatre, R M Somasundaram, said that the property has stood for more than 50 years without proper maintenance. The renovation process was to revive the business.

This theatre in Chennai has survived the various socio-politico-cultural changes in T Nagar for over 75 years. Krishnaveni and people like Kannan are members of the past decades.

According to Somasundaram, the theatre was constructed in 1946 and run by Andhra Pradesh-based Krishnaveni. In 1968, SM Ramanathan Chettiar purchased the property from the owner of Kamala Theatre, VN Chidambaram Chettiar. Since then, the theatre has been managed by Ramanathan and his sister’s family.

Krishnaveni Theatre, with an old building and fading paint, was drifting away from its collective memory. At a low point, the theatre started screening adult films and B-grade cinema and movies.There were other complications as well, as people began misusing the property.There was also a lot of interest from people in buying this property.

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