GST fallout: TN theatres to open tomorrow as shutdown comes to an end

The ongoing theatre shutdown in Tamil Nadu has come to an end with the theatre owners agreeing to end their strike over the impostion of an entertainment tax by the state government over and above the GST (goods and services tax).

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Addressing mediapersons after a meeting between film industry representatives and the state government, Tamil Nadu Cinema Theatre Owners Federation president Abirami Ramanathan, "I would firstly like to greet and thank all the public for their patience and co-operation. Theatres remain shut for the fourth consecutive day today and as a result, there has been a loss of around Rs20 crore.    

"Under these circumstances, talks were happening between the film industry and the government at various stages. Ministers including Jayakumar, Veeramani, Velumani and Kadambur Raji and government officials understood our difficulties. What we have decided is that there will be a committee that will be formed with representatives from both the film industry and the government to decide if there should be an entertainment tax or not. From our side, there will be eight representatives. We do not know how many representatives will be there from the government side. We hope the decision this committee will take will be in our favour. Therefore, we have decided to open theatres from tomorrow."

All theatres in the state will open from tomorrow.

The news brought cheer to scores of producers, distributors, directors and those associated with the film industry along with film buffs as business had taken a pounding with theatres being shut for the fourth consecutive day.