hello and welcome to India my name is Brock.
i want to share my story with you about going to an INOX movie theater for the first time in India.
i've never been to one before. it's a totally different experience than what i'm used to in the United States.
so i'm going to share that story with you. i watched the movie Chakra. apparently it's a new movie right now.
i must say, i'm not really big into Indian movies. i confess, i've watched several over the last couple of years.
and it's really difficult for me to get into an Indian movie. but this is the first time i could, kind of, follow along.
and it was entertaining enough for me to continue watching. so, that says something at least.
i guess being so used to Hollywood films, you expect ,like, i don't know… we have high expectations, i guess…as an American in film.
so yeah, i don't know. i'm not gonna go too much more into that. but it was a cool movie. especially the ending.
but anyway, i'm going to describe to you, especially for the Americans listening, what it's like to go to a movie theater in India.
so i have like a whole list of things to go through. so this is, like, the storyline of events that took place in my two hour visit at the movie theater.
so i go to a local mall, and inside the mall i searched all over this place. i could not find the ticket booth.
i could not find the movie theater. turns out that you have to buy a ticket on the bottom, and then after that, you have to go to the top to find the unmarked movie theater… that is unmarked.
it's really weird. but, i found it. so i go up to the counter and and i didn't know if they would speak english or not. but i tried.
i said “any movies in english?” and luckily he could speak in english. so it was wonderful. especially because my phone was stolen last week and so i cannot translate at all.
i have no mobile. so the first thing he says is “no. there aren't any movies in english.” so i'm like ‘oh, this stinks’, you know? i walked all the way here, and there's nothing.
i guess i could sit and watch a Tamil movie, and not know what's happening...but that'd be kind of boring.
so i said “what about subtitles?” i said “movie in Tamil, but can you read in English at the bottom?” he says “oh wait, wait one moment.”
so he gets out a phone and he calls someone and talks. and he says “ah yes, there's one movie. it's called Chakra.” i said “ah, okay.”
i was going to ask him what it was about… but i thought it would get too complicated. so i just said “what time?”
he says “now!” he says “in about 6 minutes it begins”. i'm like ah okay. so, i have to
somehow get inside the movie theater within 6 minutes. so he says “you want one ticket?” i said
“yeah.” “it's 178 rupees.” “okay, no problem.” “what is your phone number?” he asks me. i don't
have a phone number. my phone was stolen and even if i did have a phone, i certainly wouldn't want
to give it to you just because i'm watching a movie. he says “oh..” he says “problem.”
i said “what?” he said “yeah, you need a phone number..” I’m like ‘you need a phone number to
watch a movie? to sit in a chair and, like, watch a movie?’ “uh, yeah, yeah.” he says “uh, wait one
moment. wait one moment…” he said “okay.” he gets out his phone again and he calls someone else,
and i hear the word ‘foreign’ i hear the word ‘number’, or something. and finally says “ah,
okay. no problem. no problem. and he like… he types in some random number. i don't know,
maybe it was his. so anyway, everything is okay. i don't have a phone number. but now
i can watch a movie. i am now approved. “would you like some popcorn and something to drink?”
“sure. why not?” it sounds good. i haven't been to a movie theater in like a year and a half. so,
why not? “okay, now the price is 295”. “okay, no problem.” i give him 500 rupees he gives me
12 rupees change. i'm thinking that doesn't sound right. 500 minus 295 doesn't equal 12.
he says “oh, no, no. 178 is for the ticket and then 298 is for the drink and the popcorn...plus
tax. so everything is 488. oh my god. that added up really quick… just for a movie for
one person!it's cheaper than the united states, by far. however, for India, that's rather expensive.
500 rupees just to watch a movie and have popcorn. but, whatever. so i paid it and i
said “where's the location? someone told me that it was upstairs…” he says ‘yeah, yeah’. he says
“follow this boy.” so one boy comes out and we go to the elevator. we wait, and wait, and wait.
the elevator comes down and everybody rushes in and then the elevator goes… and so we had to wait,
and wait, and wait. so finally, i said “let's just, like, go up the stairs”. and he says “yeah,
no problem?” i said “yeah, let's go!” so he starts running up the stairs. i'm like, ‘oh my god,
i'm like an old man’ i gotta keep up with him. so he's going pretty quick, and i'm trying to
keep up with him. and i can, i guess. so we go up 5 flights of stairs until we meet another man
who then looks at our ticket and he checks my temperature, to make sure i'm not infected,
or whatever. he takes me to room #4, which is on my ticket. and we're about ready to enter.
the man looks at my ticket and he sees my seat number. they assign seats here, by the way.
in the united states, you just… kind of just go and sit wherever you want. but here,
you have to pick a seat and go to your seat. that's just how it is. anyway, the man at the
door was like “do you want your snacks now?” and i said “what do you mean, do i want my snacks now…?”
like, isn't that when you're supposed to get them? before the movie starts? because after the movie
begins and you're sitting down watching a movie, why would you want to get up and go out and order…
and then come back… and then sit down and miss the movie? so i was kind of confused by that question.
but i said “yeah, snacks, like, now… because i want a drink while i'm watching the movie, not
order them after the movie is finished. I don't know…it just seems weird. the boy took my slip,
went and ordered everything. he brought it to me and he escorted me to the chair.
this was only for me because i'm a foreigner and i didn't know where i was. so, he was really kind.
he brought me to the chair. i thanked him. he sat me down. he says “anything else?” i said “no,
this is perfect.” he says “okay, have a good day. bye.” i said “thank you, bye.” so he went
away. i started eating my caramel popcorn, which was really good by the way. particularly good.
but the coca-cola tastes like, i don't know. it was weird. like a couple drops of syrup,
and the rest was water. carbonated water. It was really weird. so the movie begins, and like,
the lights turn off. and the the commercials kind of start. and people just randomly come in late…
which is totally fine. but everyone is using their phone… and their flashlight. so they turn on the
flashlight. they walk in the room. the flashlight isn't pointed towards the ground. the flashlight,
is like, up shining in people's faces… then the ground… then up at the ceiling. like what
the hell?! and it wasn't just one person, it was just tons of people… just coming in
random directions… just using their phone. like, people! hello?! look at the ground!
the ground is lit up with individual lights on each row number, with each seat attached to it.
you can… you can see the numbers everywhere, with all these little miniature lights. you
don't need a flashlight. but everybody used their phone, turned on the flashlight. totally
disturbs everyone. and nobody's quiet when they come in. they just, like, walk in and chat with
their friends as they're walking up the stairs. “oh, oh, where's our seat number? oh we're…
look at… here's our receipt… uh, let me… let me look here…” shining. i'm like ‘oh my god,
it's so crazy’. the movie's playing, i'm trying to read the screen. people are walking in the way.
people are talking to each other. like, what the hell?! this is so crazy! finally, when i think
everybody, like, gets comfortable and finds their seat… and sits down… then people's phones start to
ring, and people answer it, and just start having a conversation in the middle of the movie theater!
“oh yeah, i'm in the movie theater. i'm watching Chakra and.. blah, blah, blah, blah…” like,
are you kidding me?! like people over here… people over here… they're just chatting on the phone,
like, as the movie's going… and nobody around them seems to care. like, no one even cares. it's the
craziest thing. 2 more people at the bottom enter. i'm sitting all the way at the top. they come in
slowly looking for seats, shining everyone in the face, all the way up to the top. trying to figure
out their own seat, even though the floor is lit up. they get all the way up to me, and just like,
shine me in the face. like, like, the flashlight is in my face. i'm like “oh my..” i had to block
it. they're like “oh, sorry”. like, how do you not know that you're bothering people with this light…
shining people in the face? like, someone has to like go like this for you to register in your
brain that you're bothering people in the middle of a movie? ah, so crazy. so, those two people,
basically they sit literally right behind me. as he passes me, it smells like he has never taken
a shower in his entire life. so that was fun. being that the fan is circulating every couple of
minutes, you catch a whiff of whatever the hell is on his body. then, another family comes in,
just when i thought everybody was sitting down. nope. another family comes in. i would say about
5 or 6 people, and they're searching for the seat. flashlights everywhere. oh my god, everybody's got
their flashlight shining. people trying to figure this whole thing out. and they sit right in front
of me. but before they sit, they literally, like, stand there. they start to walk in and
then realize no, no, no, let's change the order… and then let's go in. and then one boy sits here,
and then the father's like “no, no, you need to sit here”. it was just like musical chairs.
people bouncing around. i cannot see the screen, therefore, i don't know what's going on because
i can't understand what they're saying, because i need to read the bottom of the screen in english.
so for about 45 seconds this just kept going. people getting up, going down,
i can't even see. it's so annoying. obviously their flashlights are shining everywhere,
because they can't figure out where the chair is. even though there’s plenty light inside the room.
so finally, everybody stops coming in late. we're sitting and watching the movie for a
while… i would say about 35-40 minutes. then i realized, my god, it's like really cold in here.
like freaking freezing. like, my nose is cold, my fingers are starting to freeze, i can't feel my
toes because i'm wearing sandals. for some reason they have the temperature super cold. it's like a
meat locker in this building! and then all of a sudden the movie randomly just, like, stops.
like, what just happened? on the screen, it's like ‘half time’. like, it’s… what do they call it?
i forgot what they call it. like transition time… where it's halfway through the movie
and so they stop everything. people can take a break and stretch and go out and buy shit.
so, the advertisement on the screen, it just keeps rolling and rolling of all these different foods
and drinks that you can buy in the court. and they have this, like, music playing that never ends.
and so immediately, everybody just like stands up. 90 to 95 % of the whole room completely
empties. everyone goes out to buy stuff and then everybody comes back within, i would say it was
about 15 minutes or so. and almost everyone is carrying something. like a drink, like ice cream,
or popcorn, or whatever it was, so i mean, this movie theater is really making a lot of
money by having this intermission. that's what it was called. by having this intermission,
it's probably a good thing for business. totally is. but super annoying. like… you you're like
watching this movie intensely and all of a sudden ‘oops, click, it's off’. everybody take a break
and go pee. everyone went outside to buy stuff, i just sat in my chair just shivering… waiting for
like any amount of heat to return… which never did. but, one man came in. he was an employee.
and he's walking around with like a sign he's saying “ice cream! anyone want ice cream? ice
cream! ice cream!” like, the last thing in the world i want right now is ice cream. i mean,
blankets?! do you sell any blankets? i will buy a… if you have a blanket, i will definitely buy a
blanket! everybody's obviously coming in late. the whole flashlight thing starts all over again. but
before the movie begins, they do advertisement. the same thing that they did at the beginning,
they do it again here. and it's “don't smoke”. it's a no smoking ad. but what's crazy about it,
is they like show the most graphic things you can ever imagine. like, one girl on the tv, she
had stuff growing on her face, and it shows her going to the doctor and having surgery. and like,
blood's going everywhere, and suction coming out, and they like chop off half of her face… and the
story… and then she gets stitched back up. like, it's shit that you just don't even want to see,
ever, in your entire life. but they put it right on the tv… right when you're eating your popcorn
and having stuff to drink. and it's just like, of all the times to see this… they show it when
you're trying to eat something. but anyway, so the movie begins again and then we just dive deeper
into the story. and for some reason, the boy sitting in front of me, he's maybe like, i don't
know, 10 or 12 years old. every time something positive happens, he decides that he needs to
start clapping and cheering. the only one in the room. so that was weird. and he's sitting right in
front of me. he's just: yay! clapping! and he's like… like kid, what are you doing? so at about
75 to 85% of the way finished with this movie, i start shaking. like, i'm just… i'm literally
like this in the movie theater. every part of my body that can touch the other part of my body,
is touching the other part of my body. like, i am literally shaking. i'm so cold. my nose… i
don't even know what that feels like anymore. my lips, my chin, my ears, my fingertips, my toes,
my knees, I can't even feel my knees! i am so damn cold! i almost considered tapping
like one of the family members in front of me… the old woman sitting there. i just wanted to
reach around and give her like a big bear hug, just to get some body heat. anyone? anyone?
anyone? come on. will someone please, like, sit on me… or sit next to me …or hug me? like, I’m so
damn cold in this room. i even like puffed in the air, looking for my breath. but it was too dark
in the room… i couldn't see. so at about the time that i lost all feeling in my legs, that was about
the time the movie finished. so that's good news. so the movie finished and we were able to stand up
and start walking down the steps. it was difficult for me to walk down the steps. like, my legs were
so stiff… so cold. my my knees didn't want to bend properly. it was so crazy. but the movie…I won't
talk too much about the movie. obviously i don't want to ruin it for anyone. but the movie was,
it was cool. i would say that my favorite part was the last 10 seconds of the whole movie… and
after you see it, you'll know why. so that's pretty much it. that's my adventure at the
Indian movie theater… at least the INOX. i don't know what the other ones are like,
but that's what they did here. basically, freeze you to death. so my recommendation
to anyone who's traveling to India and wants to watch a movie in a movie theater: bring your hat,
bring your scarf, bring a winter coat, some snow pants… and yeah, basically just dress for winter!