SPI Cinemas

Coordinates: 13°03′23″N 80°15′33″E / 13.056355°N 80.259151°E / 13.056355; 80.259151

SPI Cinemas
Private
Industry Entertainment
Founded April 1974 (1974-04)
Headquarters Royapettah, Chennai, India
Number of locations
 20
Area served
 India
Key people
 Kiran Reddy (MD)
Parent SPI Group Private Ltd.
Website spicinemas.in

SPI Cinemas is an Indian multiplex chain and film production company owned by the SPI Group, headquartered in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. The company began operating multiplexes in Chennai, and eventually expanded to several states in India. SPI is often lauded for its premium quality and inexpensive pricing.[1][2] Its theatres, primarily Sathyam Cinemas, are often used by filmmakers for film premieres and audio launch events.[3] Popcorn served at SPI Cinemas has received considerable praise from film goers and the media.[4]

SPI is notable for being the first multiplex operator in India to equip its screens with the Dolby Atmos and Auro 11.1 sound systems.[5][6]

History

Sathyam Cinemas was originally named the "Royal Theatre Complex" and was built by Raja from Venkatagiri in April 1974.[7][8] With a capacity of 1,255 seats, it was the largest multiplex built in Chennai at the time.[9]

Kiran Reddy, the current CEO of SPI Group, revealed in a 2012 interview with The Hindu that Sathyam Cinemas was acquired by his family "from someone" in the 1980s. It was acquired for real estate purposes with no intention of continuing the theatre business. He claimed, "The intent was to demolish the Sathyam building. The theatre wasn't a viable business if you looked at the value of the land." However, when he got involved in the business, the family had made several improvements to the theatre.[10] Reddy had taken over the business in 1999 and continued developing the theatre, adding three more screens and refurbishing the existing three.[11]

In 2009, SPI Cinemas established itself as a film production company, producing its first film, Thiru Thiru Thuru Thuru.[12] SPI Cinemas is one of the key movie distributors in Tamil Nadu and has forayed into the music business with Think Music to distribute Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam movie soundtracks via digital media and Purplenote to distribute non-movie contemporary music.[13]

Future

In June 2017, Swaroop Reddy, President, SPI Cinemas, said that the company is looking to strengthen its presence in the South with new launches planned in Puducherry, Hyderabad, Bengaluru and Mumbai in the next 9-12 months. It is also looking to grow beyond metros and will look at tier-II cities in Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. “We see strong movie-going population in these regions,” Reddy said. Places under consideration are Guntur, Tirupati, Nizamabad, Madurai, Salem, Tiruchi and Vellore. The company already has presence in Coimbatore and Warangal.[14][15]

Proposed acquisition

In August 2018, PVR Cinemas announced its intention to acquire SPI Cinemas for over ₹850 crore (US$120 million) in a cash-and-stock deal.[16]

Locations

State/TerritoryCityTheatre NameTheatre LocalityNumber of ScreensRef.
Tamil NaduChennaiSathyam CinemasRoyapettah6
Escape CinemasExpress Avenue, Royapettah8[17]
S2 PeramburSpectrum Mall, Perambur5
S2 TheyagarajaOld Theyagaraja Talkies, Thiruvanmiyur2
Palazzo CinemasThe Forum Vijaya, Vadapalani9 (including one IMAX)[18]
CoimbatoreThe CinemaBrookefields Mall, Krishnaswamy Road6[19]
PuducherryPondicherryThe CinemaProvidence Mall5[20]
KarnatakaBengaluruThe CinemaGT World Mall, Magadi Road5
AURA Ascendas Park Square Mall,Whitefield 4
MaharashtraMumbaiLe RêveOld Globus Cinema, Bandra1[15]
S2 Cinemas Old Haseen Cinema, Bhiwandi 4 [21]
KeralaTrivandrumKripa CinemasThampanoor2[15]
Andhra PradeshNelloreS2 NelloreOld Raghava Cineplex, Pogathota3
The CinemaMGB Felicity Mall5
Archana CinemasRamji Nagar1
Leela MahalVidya Mahal Center1
Guntur The Cinema KSP Prime Mall, Naaz Center 5
TelanganaWarangalS2 WarangalGirimajpet5
HyderabadS2 CinemasNoma Talkies, Mallapur4
The Cinema

(Opening Q4 2018)

 Preston prime, Biodiversity Jn Gachibowli4
The Cinema

(Opening Q4 2018)

 Atrium mall, Gachibowli5

References

  1. ↑ "Hollywood praise for Sathyam Cinemas!". Behindwoods. 31 October 2012.
  2. ↑ Naveena Vijayan (15 April 2014). "Luxe Takes Movie Experience Beyond the Conventional". The New Indian Express.
  3. ↑ Lata Srinivasan (1 November 2012). "Ang Lee praises Sathyam Cinemas". The Times of India.
  4. ↑ Sudhir Srinivasan (14 May 2015). "Chennai's corny tradition". The Hindu.
  5. ↑ Aaron Almeida (5 December 2012). "Dolby launches its Dolby Atmos audio platform in India". Firstpost.
  6. ↑ Bill Mead (25 November 2013). "Technology in review: Asia embraces digital, 3D and immersive sound". Film Journal International.
  7. ↑ N. Ramakrishnan (27 December 2013). "Chennai has a big role to play". Business Line.
  8. ↑ "Sathyam Cinemas Selects Qube for All Screens of Its Flagship Multiplex at Chennai, India". Business Wire. 27 June 2007.
  9. ↑ Nitya Menon (27 November 2013). "The changing scene". The Hindu.
  10. ↑ Shonali Muthalaly (23 February 2012). "Reddy Made In Chennai". The Hindu.
  11. ↑ Sreedhar Pillai (15 December 2006). "And now, the multiplex mania". The Hindu.
  12. ↑ Shalini Shah (7 August 2009). "A first for Sathyam". The Hindu.
  13. ↑ "About Us".
  14. ↑ Swathi Moorthy (14 June 2017). "SPI Cinemas to have 25 more screens in South by March 2018". The Hindu Business Line.
  15. 1 2 3 Sreedhar Pillai (15 October 2016). "Chennai's famous Sathyam cinemas expands to Mumbai, Pondicherry, Hyderabad". Firstpost.
  16. ↑ Laghate, Gaurav (12 August 2018). "PVR set to acquire SPI cinemas in a cash-cum-stock deal valued at over Rs 850 crore". The Economic Times. Retrieved 12 August 2018.
  17. ↑ Prince Frederick (18 June 2013). "Let the show begin". The Hindu.
  18. ↑ Subramanian, Karthik (2014-11-03). "The long wait for IMAX". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2018-07-26.
  19. ↑ V. S. Palaniappan (6 December 2011). "The Cinema @ Brookefields opens tomorrow". The Hindu.
  20. ↑ https://www.facebook.com/spicinemasindia/posts/1063621670444289
  21. ↑ Pillai, Sreedhar (18 June 2018). "SPI Cinemas to expand in Mumbai". Twitter.
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