Vellore’s landmark government theatre crying for attention

Today, it just has the remnants of one. “Though it can still be run as a theatre, it needs to be renovated which will involve a sum of Rs 1 crore as chairs and the project system have to be replaced,” said a government official. “The alternative is to demolish and rebuild it as a function hall,” say PWD officials. But the demolition cost is something the Information Department, which manages it, cannot afford. The proposal for changing it into a function hall was forwarded to Chennai. But there is no response till now. 

Sources revealed that after downing shutters, the staff were moved to Chennai from where they were again sent back to Vellore as they were in excess at their new posts. “Recently, the closed theatre was allotted an accountant and some cleaning staff who had no work to do,” officials revealed.

Meanwhile, the state government’s plan to hand it over to the Vellore Corporation failed as the rates demanded were more than what the local body was willing to pay. 

The Arangam stopped screening its regular morning, matinee and first shows some eight years ago. The rates were dirt cheap, the highest being Rs 10, followed by Rs 5 and Rs 3. The Arangam screened old MGR and Sivaji movies and in its heyday was visited by all dignitaries, including collectors and former DGP Walter Devaram, who was the then Vellore range DIG. 

For official functions, the Arangam was the natural venue, due to its location at the centre of the town. On such occasions, screening of movies would be stopped for the function’s duration. 

However, bickerings between two film distributor associations in the city which supplied films to the arangam resulted in the theatre finally downing its shutters. In a town which lacked entertainment opportunities for the poor, this was the only venue which was accessible to the poor. Workers, loadmen from the nearby Vellore market and occasionally even the well-heeled patronised the theatre when it screened classic movies.

Though the state government does own such establishments in towns like Ooty and Tiruchy, they have either been leased out to private parties as at Tiruchy or are used only for government functions. Even the Kalaivanar Arangam in Chennai was first a children’s theatre before being ultimately renovated as a grand multi-purpose hall recently.