Novelty to make way for hangout zone

Another single-screen movie hall is set to bite the dust. Novelty Cinema, on Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Marg, will make way for a mall.

Another single-screen movie hall is set to bite the dust. Novelty Cinema, on Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Marg, will make way for a mall.

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The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), which plans to redevelop the cinema into a commercial centre, has floated a tender to select a company, which will be given the 1,389 square yard (about 1,161 sq. metre) land on lease for 30 years.

The cinema near Old Delhi railway station, a landmark for people in the Walled city area, had downed its shutters in 2,000 after its’ lease expired.

The civic agency claims the private firm that will develop the area can also create a cinema hall inside the commercial centre. The company would be able to earn revenue through advertising and from commercial activities.

Novelty, which dates to the 1930s (even the MCD can’t recall the exact date) was one of the first movie halls to come up in the city.

“The revamped place can have a cinema hall, a mall and an underground parking facility. The area were the cinema is located has a number of markets that sell various kinds of spices. The concept of having a part of the mall sell spices can also be explored,” said a senior MCD official.

The civic agency has fixed the minimum reserve price at Rs 5 crore. The MCD would also get Rs 15 lakh a month as rent. The company would be responsible for the upkeep and maintenance of the property.

The project has been planned under the public-private participation (PPP) scheme.