When film isn't enough

Movie theatres are spaces for focused viewing, but are being turned into 'destinations' with full-service chaos

- Shrabonti Bagchi

As the lights dim and the trailers start rolling, you sink into your seat, in complete communion with the screen. It’s a focus and a withdrawal rarely achieved in any other setting—not watching TV at home, hyper-aware of everything going on around you, and certainly not replicated by peering into a 6-inch screen held in your hand.

But soon, a server arrives with popcorn and sodas for the people in the seat next to yours, and you miss the opening credits as they engage in a whispered conversation about modes of payment or a wrong order.