Slowdown in real estate sector hampering screen additions for multiplexes

The slowdown in the real estate sector has reduced the pace of new-screen additions for multiplex chains this financial year, forcing them to look at alternatives. Multiplexes are now either expanding within existing properties or converting single screens into multiple screens through partnerships. 

Multiplex chain Inox Leisure, for example, launched its biggest mall offering on Wednesday, an 11-screen theatre in Mumbai called the Megaplex. For this, Inox converted its existing seven-screen multiplex in a mall in the suburb of Malad into a 60,000 sq ft, 1,586-seater megaplex that can host 60 shows and an audience of 6,000 per day. The Megaplex,