Built in the late 1950s, the Cinema hall in Samdrup Jongkhar is one of the first and the oldest movie halls in the country. Located in the heart of Samdrup Jongkhar town, the cinema hall today wears a deserted look.
The movie hall was one of the first and the only cinema hall in the region. It was once popular for screening many super hit Hindi films. The cinema hall has screened only a few Bhutanese films.
“It could be due to the unbearable summer heat in Samdrup Jongkhar that is discouraging most Bhutanese film makers from screening their films here,” said the proprietor of the cinema hall, Sonam Dema.
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She said she had many plans for the cinema hall but nothing has materialised so far. “I wanted to turn it into a store but could not get the permission from the authorities. I even thought of making it into an indoor games and sports facility for the youth in the town and that too did not take shape.”
She added, after the movie hall started seeing lesser number of people every year, they tried to upgrade the hall with digital equipment for screen latest movies available on CDs, “But that too failed.” She said there are plans to convert the hall into a mini-hall like cinemax.
