Ponto de Vista

For more years than I can remember, I’ve wanted to go see a film at Deepak Talkies, one of the few single screen cinemas in my neighborhood. When we moved to Prabhadevi in 1987, Kirti Talkies on Caddell Road had recently shut, but was still a landmark. These ‘Talkies’, by virtue of their location, catered to mill workers who inhabited the charming two-story tenements that dot Lower Parel and Prabhadevi, and are now being replaced with ugly metal and glass high-rises wherever you look.
Every time I cross Deepak Talkies on my way back from Lower Parel, I try

to get a glimpse of the pair of white elephants inside even as I take in which movie is showing. There are Bihari films sometimes, B grade films, too, and, of course, the blockbusters. Every Salman Khan film gets a massive poster and sees a long line of only men waiting to get a bang for their 150 bucks. (I thought the tickets would be cheaper, honestly. They go up to 180 for dress circle ‘silver’ seats and 200 for balcony ‘gold’.)
So, I’ve yearned to go in but never found the nerve, nor the company. Until the Matterden Film Club in collaboration with the younger generation of forward thinking owners put the venue forward for screening film classics for one show a day. Last week we caught Buster Keaton’s ‘The General’ on the big screen for 100 rupee tickets; upcoming films include Citizen Kane, The Little Tramp, and The Seven Samurai. It’s really quite nice inside! There’s soon going to be a café and bookstore along with film festivals and more screenings. I’m so excited. And I’m looking forward to seeing the white elephants again.