Pandemic woes come back to haunt Sandalwood

It would seem that the covid-19 pandemic is back to haunt the Kannada film industry. Having regained some momentum over the past few months, the industry is likely to face yet another setback as the state government decides on restricting full occupancy in cinema halls for the second time. The decision comes on the back of a recent spike in the number of active cases and citing precaution as the need of the hour, the govt. of Karnataka has chosen to step in with firm actions. However, having put the new rule in motion on the 2nd of April, the government has now decided to allow 100% occupancy till April 7th, following which the cinema halls will have no option but adhere to the 50% rule. Film 'Yuvarathnaa', which released on the 1st of April is likely to suffer the most, and despite having a whole undisturbed week for itself in the cinema halls, the makers of the film can't help but feel dismayed at the moment. Having taken to social media and other avenues to implore the government into changing its decision, the allowance till April 7th comes as a small respite for the team. Very recently, actor Puneeth Rajkumar released a video on social media to thank his many supporters and to also advise his audience to stay safe and protected while they watch his film in theatres. It would be interesting to see how the upcoming releases get affected by the change and whether or not, there's any significant impact on the industry.