Cinema halls in Kushtia were already struggling due to the dominance of television, internet,  low quality scripts and backdated infrastructure. However, Covid-19  and the subsequent lockdown and associated public health protocols have acted as the final nail in the coffin for the film theatres of Kushtia Among the 12 cinema halls of Kushtia, only Banani Cinema Hall was operative before the pandemic while the rest of the dream palaces were already filled with archaic equipment or abandoned all together. But sadly, all kinds of activities in the only active cinema hall of Kushtia came to a halt since the first Covid-19 lockdown imposed last year. Now all the workers involved in this industry have become unemployed. Also read: The final countdown for cinema halls End of an era Roxy was the first Cinema Hall in the city. Established at the heart of the city in the 70's, this movie theatre has been closed since 2003. Currently, it's being used as the dumping ground of archaic equipments and household commodities. Keya Cinema Hall was also built at a very busy place of the city. But currently there is no sign of it. The Cinema Hall was bulldozed and a corporate building named Porimol Tower has been built in its place.

Cinema hall owners will get Tk 1,000 crore long-term soft loans under the refinancing scheme of Bangladesh Bank to construct modern cinema halls and also renovate the old ones.

After over seven months of closure to curb the  spread of coronavirus, country’s cinema halls will reopen Friday maintaining health guidelines.

After what would be almost exactly 7 months of shutdown since March 18, the cinema halls in Bangladesh are set to welcome moviegoers again from October 16, Information Minister Dr Hasan Mahmud disclosed at a press conference Monday. The minister announced this decision at the secretariat after a meeting between the ministry and Bangladesh Film Distributors' Association took place earlier in the day. "If the current situation of COVID-19 in the country does not worsen in the near future, we can reopen the halls from October 16 if our Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina approves the decision," Dr Hasan Mahmud informed journalists at the press conference. However, the halls will initially only be allowed to operate at half capacity and they also have to re-allocate the seating arrangements to assure proper maintenance of the health guidelines. "Also, if the COVID-19 situation deteriorates, the decision would have to be reversed," he added. Explaining PM's special attention to the devastating state of the cinema industry, the minister said "We now have approximately 200-250 cinema halls and cineplexes still operating, from having approximately 1,200 cinema halls all over the country and our Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is very keen to improve this industry. On August 25, she asked to create a special fund to provide financial support to the owners of cinema halls through a big project, in order to revive their business through grants and loans at the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) meeting." The downfall of the industry was even propelled with the pandemic this year since the shut down of the halls was announced back in March. Major occasions like the Pahela Baishakh, Eid-Ul-Fitr, Eid-Ul-Adha in which the industry generally eyes big profit margins in the calendar year - have generated absolutely zero money this year because of COVID-19. The estimated loss during these occasions is around Tk 500 crore for the entire industry, according to the industry insiders. Now with the decision of reopening, the industry is eyeing for a resurgence. Film shootings for upcoming projects have also been resumed in recent times since the lockdown was lifted.

The entire world is still going through an unprecedented time and consequences of COVID-19, with the reopening of businesses and living with the ‘new normal’ bringing several changes to lives and livelihoods in comparison to the pre-lockdown era.