Satish Kaushik Converts Trucks into Theatres – Rural India Can Now Watch Films for Rs 35!

Actor and director Satish Kaushik takes Bollywood to rural India by converting trucks into movable theatres.

In 2009, director Dev Benegal’s film Road, Movie showed Satish Kaushik and Abhay Deol wandering across villages of India in a 1942 Chevrolet truck, which later turned out to be an old touring cinema. Actor, producer, and filmmaker Satish Kaushik, who we assume was deeply inspired by this concept, has extended the idea to real-life by modifying old trucks into locomotive theatre spaces that can travel to people located in villages and other remote locations. There, movie buffs can watch blockbuster films within a mere price range of Rs 35 to Rs 75!

In a public statement, Kaushik explained his motivation for the project, called the Mobile Digital Movie Theatre (MDMT), “There are only 2200 multiplexes for 1.3 billion Indians, which is far below the density in developed countries.” Under this creative initiative, nearly ten theatres will be hitting the road within a couple of months, according to FirstPost. Each space will be named after celebrated movies like Don, Mr India, Shahenshah, and Baahubali. This mission became possible with the support of entrepreneur Sushil Chaudhary, who manifested the idea of mobile cinemas through his start-up called Picture-Time.

The theatres will project visuals on a 22-foot wide screen with a 5.1 Dolby surround sound system. Around 150 to 200 onlookers can sit and watch the movie in the air-conditioned and fireproof premises. Small-town movie buffs, who usually miss out on their favourite films because of a lack of entertainment facilities, can now benefit through Picture Time.

Photos source: Satish Kaushik