Rewinding vintage cinema theatres in Vizag

Vintage theatres carry a different feel altogether, with simple yet minimalistic facilities they offer the best cinema experience. Old theatres like Jagadamba, Chitralaya and Melody are still quite famous among youth. Cinema halls are the places which attract people from all classes of society, irrespective of age groups. With advancements in sound and screening, theatres have changed a lot, the audience experiences a realistic feel. In the era of home theatres, smart TVs, laptops, and mobile phones, nothing could beat the experience of watching a movie in the theatre. Here is a list of vintage cinema theatres in Vizag.

Vizag is said to be having a few of the oldest movie theatres in Andhra Pradesh. Few of the Vintage theatres are closed while few are still functioning.

Functioning Vintage Theatres in Vizag:

There are quite a few vintage theatres in Vizag that are still functioning. Despite many multiplexes in town, there are still a few old cinema theatres that are still running successfully. Many Vizagites still prefer these theatres for watching their favourite stars on the screen.

#1 Leelamahal Theatre

Leelamahal Theatre is built in and around 1965. This is the first AC theatre in Visakhapatnam. It is situated at Dabagardens.

#2 Chitralaya Theatre

Chitralaya is built in the year 1969. This was initially one single theatre, which was later converted into INOX multiplex with 4 screens. This is located near Suryabagh junction, Jagadamba road.

#3 Jyothee Theatre

Jyothee theatre is built in the late 1960s. It is currently owned by Suresh Production (which is a famous Telugu film production company). This theatre is situated near Dolphin Hotel.

#4 Jagadamba Theatre

Jagadamba is one of the oldest theatres opened in 1970, which was built according to the stringent specifications set by Mr Todd A.O. Ever since its opening, this theatre has managed to stay up-to-date with the latest technologies in cinema-like DTS and Dolby Atmos sound systems. With a glorious history of 50 years, it is still the preferred place for Hollywood movies.

#5 Geeth Sangeeth Theatre

Geeth and Sangeeth is a very famous theatre located at Allipuram. It has two different screens called Geeth and Sangeeth.

#6 Rama Talkies Theatre

Rama Talkies theatre is one of those theatres from the 1970s. It is located near the Assilmeta junction. This theatre was so famous that the area, where this theatre is situated, is now called as Rama Talkies Junction.

#7 Sangam Sarat Theatre

Sangam Sarat theatre is built in the year 1978. This theatre is well known for the visit of the famous film starts during the success meets. It has two screens Sangam and Sarat. It is situated near the station road.

#8 Kamal / Melody Theatre

Kamal theatre was later named Melody. Melody theatre holds 774 seats that would give stiff competition to any other multiplex’s capacity and are positioned such that the person sitting behind, irrespective of their height, would not have a problem viewing the screen.

#9 Rama Krishna Theatre

Rama Krishna theatre is built in the 1960s, with minimum advancements in terms of sound systems for those days. It is located near port 75ft road.

#10 Venkateshwara Theatre

Venkateshwara Theatre is built in the mid-1970s. This theatre is situated at Dabagardens, back street of Jagadamba theatre. It has two screens, they are Sri Venkateshwara and Venkateshwara. They were initially non-ac theatres, which were later converted into ac theatres.

Closed Vintage Theatres in Vizag

Some of the oldest theatres in Vizag have been closed. Despite being quite famous, over time with the ongoing changes, these movie theatres have been closed and converted into godowns and hotels.

#1 Lakshmi Talkies / Krishna Theatre

Lakshmi theatre is probably the first theatre in Vizag which was near the port area. This cinema hall dates back to the colonial period. It has been closed and converted into a godown.

#2 Saraswati Theatre

Saraswati theatre is built in 1948. This is sad to be one of the very few cinema halls that were available for the movie buffs in those days. This theatre is closed in 2005 and is now converted into Keys Hotel.

#3 Poorna Theatre

Poorna theatre is built in the 1940s. This cinema hall is situated near the Poorna market, the old town area. And this theatre is also closed.

#4 Navarang Theatre

Navarang theatre is built in the early 1950s. This theatre is situated near the Durgalamma temple. Just like the other old theatres, even this is closed.

#5 Prabath Talkies

Prabhat Talkies is also located in the Poorna market area main road, old town. This theatre is built in the late 1950s.

#6 Rajeshwari / Gokul Theatre

Rajeshwari is one of the movie theatres from the late 1960s. The name of the theatre was changed to Gokul. This theatre is closed in the early 2000s. It is located near Allipuram. This is one of the oldest theatres which is close to 70mm screen.

#7 Manorama Theatre

Manorama theatre is built in 1967. This is located in Allipuram. Despite the theatre being closed, the area is still named after the theatre (popularly called Manorama Junction).

Not too old are the times when we used to go and buy tickets near the Movie theatre and watch the show. Now we get to watch a movie with a flick of a button through the OTT platform.