Ashish Cinema

During the golden period of single screen cinemas, Grant Road itself, had a dozen theatres like Minerva, Naaz, Imperial, Swastik, Dreamland, Super, Alfred, New Roshan, Nishat, Royal, Silver, Taj, Gulshan and many more. While we have covered most of these theatres and reflected on their past glory, there is one more area in suburban Mumbai which was a hub for many big cinema halls at close distance to each other. That area is Chembur which housed theatres like Basant, Natraj, Vijay, Sahakar (now Sahakar Plaza), twins Amar and Sharad and of course Ashish which was unique in its own way. Hence, we take a detour from Mumbai city to Chembur and explore this particular cinema.

Ashish theatre opened sometime in 1975 with Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s classic Mili (1975) starring superstar Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bhaduri. That era belonged to Amitabh and later, quite a few of his hits like Sholay (1975), Amar Akbar Anthony (1977), Trishul (1978), Don (1978), Muqaddar Ka Sikandar (1978), Mr. Natwarlal (1979), Shaan (1980), Andhaa Kaanoon (1983), Shahenshah (1988) and Hum (1991) enjoyed a long run here.

The theatre was frequented by the family audience from the neighbouring RCF colony in Chembur, Laxmi colony, Mahul Village and also the localities connecting to Tilak Nagar and parts of Ghatkopar. Ashish had a seating capacity of seven hundred plus and was known for its brilliant sound system as well as its unique mirror screen. It would screen the latest Hindi movies and occasionally English and Marathi language cinema as well. Some parts of its exterior structure bore close resemblance to Mumbai’s Maratha Mandir Cinema.

The most unique aspect about Ashish Cinema was its concept of mirror screen. The theatre had a huge mirror placed in front of the screen and the projector played the movie content in reverse which could be viewed normally in the mirror. The basic concept of mirror screen was to create an illusion of depth which made the front benchers watch the film comfortably without straining their neck. Ashish was one of the first theatres in India and the only one in Mumbai to get such a screen and is still fondly remembered for the same.

Unfortunately, this mirror screen was not well maintained later and it gathered a lot of dust and would not give a good view to the patrons. Worse, during the screening of Ashanti in 1982, a mini riot erupted in the theatre and the mirror was broken by some hooligans. The management did not replace the mirror after this and Ashish lost its uniqueness forever.

The ‘80s ushered in the disco era with Mithun Chakraborty and his films were a rage here. Most of his hits had a long run here and tickets would get sold for obscene amounts in black. Till date, Ashish Cinema is well known to screen Mithun da movies and they do well even in re-runs. Some of its other successful releases include Dharam Karam (1975), Karishmaa (1984), Tezaab (1988), Ghayal (1990), Aashik Aawara (1993), Chachi 420 (1997), Lagaan (2001), 3 Idiots (2009) etc.

The legendary Raj Kapoor and family, living in Chembur, were regular at Ashish as well as Basant Cinema. Some of the other celebrities known to visit Ashish include Om Prakash, Kishor Sahu, Lalita Pawar and Dhumal. The theatre appeared in Rajkumar Kohli’s hit Naukar Biwi Ka (1983) where an important scene was shot between Anita Raj, Om Prakash and Pran. In this scene, a spacious lawn can be seen in the theatre premise which does not exist today as it was surrendered to the local authority for widening of the road.

After having a glorious run from the ‘70s till the end of the century, Ashish Cinema started declining with the emergence of multiplex era in the new millennium. It started losing its family patrons to the plexes. Already in a badly maintained state, the theatre started screening Bhojpuri movies and B grade releases to stay afloat. Its patrons were reduced to migrant labourers and slum locals only. The theatre would manage to screen an occasional mainstream release but its old charm was long lost.

In 2018, the much hyped multistarrer Thugs of Hindostan released here in Diwali. It turned out to be a washout and was replaced shortly with the Marathi hit Ani.. Dr. Kashinath Ghanekar which had released on same day. My friend had gone to ask about the new release and the booking clerk told him to pay hundred rupees then and there and come on Friday and he would get a seat without a ticket. The theatre was faring that badly!!

Nevertheless, Ashish Cinema managed to survive the multiplex onslaught. But the biggest blow was yet to come! All theatres across the country shut in March 2020 due to the Covid 19 pandemic and that was the final straw for many such single screens. Biggies like Central Plaza, Dreamland and Alankar announced permanent closure during this period. Ashish Cinema is still shut even though the cinema halls have been allowed to re-open after more than eighteen months. Its old and loyal patrons opine that the theatre can still do good business even today if it is renovated and managed well. Let’s see!