How visual and sound technologies are enabling viewers to live and breathe a movie

Circa early 2000s. The shift from single screen theatres to multiplexes becomes a game-changer for cinema viewers in India. There actually is more than one movie playing at the same theatre. The seats are plush.

Cut to 2015. Things have gotten even better. Not just in terms of movie options and comfort, but the whole sensory experience of watching a film is enhanced thanks to technology.

Cinepolis recently opened a 4DX technology-equipped theatre at Viviana Mall in Thane in Mumbai. The technology provides viewers a simulation of what they are watching on screen.

“People look forward to 4DX and such experiences. So we invest heavily into technology,” says Ashish Shukla, director, Cinepolis India. Shukla says that the 4DX occupancy during Christopher Nolan’s blockbuster Interstellar was higher by about 30 per cent compared to Cinepolis’s traditional screenings.

Today’s techno-savvy audience wants it all — 3D, 4DX, IMAX, Dolby Atmos, Auro 11.1 and what have you. And multiplex owners are keeping pace with the demand. Both Inox and PVR have at least one 3D screen in all their multiplexes across India.

“For a movie like Transformers, 80 per cent of our audience preferred 3D over 2D,” says Kamal Gianchandani, CEO, PVR Pictures. PVR also has two IMAX screens, with three more in the pipeline. Alok Tandon, CEO, Inox Leisure, says, “When we grew up, there would be one 3D movie in many years. It has changed now.” So much so that most multiplex chains did not release The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies in 2D.

Sound technology is an equally important factor these days. Dolby Atmos and Auro 11.1 offer 3D immersive surround sound to the audience. Inox has only one Dolby Atmos theatre so far, but Tandon says there is scope to add more.

“If you are seeing a tornado on screen, you will feel like you are in middle of it,” says Pankaj Kedia, senior regional director, India, South East Asia, ANZ, Dolby. Gianchandani of PVR says that not all audience are ready to pay a premium for only sound. At the same time, there are takers for 4DX and IMAX where the `200-250 premium over regular tickets isn’t significantly high.