Mumbai's legendary Eros Theatre gets torn down, Vir Das, Vivek Agnihotri and others share memories

Mumbai is often regarded as the "city of dreams" because many have made their dreams possible in this city - from businessmen to film superstars. Of many things, the city has to offer - Bollywood tops the chart. Almost everyone who has an association with Bollywood, somewhere shares an affection with Mumbai's old theatres.

Built in 1938, Eros Theatre closed its doors forever to the public in 2017 and now the movie theatre is being torn down to be revamped into a mall. It was one of the many single screens that once ruled the industry. In the list of single screens that have been shut down like ROyal Cinema, Novelty Cinema, Taj Talkies, Imperial Cinema and others, Eros joined the list too.

'Heartbreaking'

Filmmaker Apurva Asrani posted the latest pictures of Eros Theatre being torn down. He writes, "Heartbreaking to see #ErosTheatre being torn down. This South Bombay Art Deco landmark, built in 1938, was where I bunked college to go to. It's where I went on my first date & where my first film #Satya was released in '98. Sad that Mumbai can't preserve its heritage buildings."



While most people who grew up in Mumbai (earlier, Bombay) felt nostalgic to see how the time changed. Several celebrities including Vir Das and The Kashmir Files maker Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri also had an emotional moment.



Vir Das spoke of watching 'Rang De Basanti' at Eros Theatre. He mentioned the importance of the Aamir Khan starrer movie and Eros Theatre, which helped him decide to make a big career change.



Similarly, Vivek R Agnihotri also mentioned that "each time a single screen theatre is torn down, a piece of my childhood dies." He then went on to mention that the director-filmmaker has watched over 100 films at Eros Theatre.

FAQs

1. Who designed Eros Theatre?
   Architect Shoraji Bhedwar
2. Why was Eros Theatre closed in 2017?
   Over nonpayment of dues and the case filed by the Labour Union.