He was taking deep long breaths. Slowly as he gathered more strength, he crawled in her direction. He left a trail of blood in his wake, from having been shot in the gut. She was lying motionless a few feet away. Her body didn’t move except for the occasional heave her chest gave when she would take in a breath. She was hanging on like him, for a precious few moments before they would both give way to their injuries. It didn’t take him more than two minutes to crawl up to her, and place his hand over hers but it seemed like forever to her. He smiled, and with great effort opened his mouth to tell her that in the end it would be all right. He turned his face and opened his mouth to speak.
TTTTRIIING TTTTTRIING the phone rang.
“What the bloody hell?”
This is exactly what first comes to my mind when the phone of someone next to me rings in the cinema while I am all engrossed in the movie. I mean, it is only basic manners to keep your phone on silent or off while you’re in the cinema. Not only can some people not do that, they have to carry on extended loud conversations. I can understand if it is an emergency, or if you’re telling that ‘I am in a movie where I won’t be able to talk to you properly on account of the sound from the speakers ‘, but I cannot understand people telling their dinner plans on the phone. Take it outside and call them back. But let me listen to what is happening in the movie.
But loud chatty callers are not the only ones that get to me. It’s the people who come late, especially if they’re friends. I think there should be an entry time limit, if you’re later than this you can’t enter the cinema house. On the normal day, I can put up with the late comers as long as they don’t give too much of obstructions. But you will have some one or the other who cannot find his way, or will walk abnormally slow and keep coming in front of the screen. It is worse when it is a friend who is late. Because now I will have to wait for them outside with their ticket to get them in. This will primarily lead to two scenarios. In the first I wait for them and miss out on the starting scenes, or I go inside catch the starting and come out when they call me. Not only am I missing out on some scenes, but I end up disturbing other cinema patrons too.
I remember that I had taken a day off to catch the first show of ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ and had to cancel the plans as one of my team members had to apply leave for a family emergency. Since only one of us could go on leave, I cancelled mine on account of his reason being more crucial than mine. The next day I went in for the morning show to enjoy the movie in peace. I had already cancelled two calls, but someone from work kept calling. I went out to take the calls, and missed slightly more than five minutes of the movie in trying to explain something (after having the other person fail to understand that I was out to watch a movie). I couldn’t sit back, and left the cinema to catch a different show where I wouldn’t be disturbed. And this was only thirty minutes into the movie.
I have tried discussing this with some friends whenever I have made my first ever movie plans with them. A friend in particular says that movie watching is a leisurely activity, and it is ok for people to come late as they have bought the tickets. I agree that they have bought the tickets, just in the same way that I bought mine. That doesn’t mean that they should come in the way of the leisure of other audience due to having coming late and so on …
This post is a part of Write Over the Weekend, an initiative for Indian Bloggers by BlogAdda
And I write 
Phone calls in a theatre, other than emergency should be declared criminal. Seriously.
Late coming… unfortunately I have had my share of them…being late, being ferried there by offspring, and their cousins. I hate it. But better late than never, if you cannot see it again! The corollary to that being see it fully the next time, leisurely, when you can con someone into going with you again 😀 I’ve done that too.
🙂
“is a leisurely activity, and it is ok for people to come late as they have bought the tickets.”
I actually want to punch the he or she who said this, right on their stupid nose. WTH. They bought the ticket for watching movie, not to disturb those others who ALSO bought tickets incidentally,to watch the movie, not to be disturbed by people like them! But I guess this is too tough a nut for such brains to crack. This is the problem with Indians.They think paying for something means they lord it over everything. The ticket is ONLY for watching the movie, and does NOT indicate ownership of movie hall for the duration of the movie. May be people who have arrived on time for the movie should gang up and disturb these people by walking up and down these disturbers, to give them a taste of their own medicine.
You already know what my feelings are on the topic.I have talked about it on Facebook status updates.
some people think that having paid ticket price, gets them all forms of entitlements
So true, this one.. I was in for Pacific rim last day… in between the awesome soundtrack playing and the full-on action on the screen, in comes a comical ringtone from the guy next to me. Not once. Twice. I had thought he would make it silent after the first time. But that was not to be.
Well said on the late comers too… though I have been guilty once.. 😛
Exactly what happens! It becomes irritating
I so agree with you and it’s such a put off to let patrons know bout ur date and dinner plans. Such a put off and bad ethics. same goes for frenz who come for movies late and they should understand a film made is a work of beauty and in a way its an insult to the creative minds involved and people who watch cinema:)
Some people are late by habit 😦
Yeh India hai mere dost… sigh… we all have to adjust accomodate… Its just not enough for the movie folks to write… please put your phone on silent… you need to be 7 feet tall and weigh about 100kilos and then you need to tell that irritant to keep his bloody fone silent.. only then will they understand!
Such a sad thing , no
oh.. I agree!!
Loud phones, loud voices, crying children in an adult movie!! Sigh!! All irritating!!!
I have actually had two cases of bawling babies. One was hilarious and the other made me respect the parents.. Will blog about it some day
Yes yes yes! Phone calls, late comings all should be banned. Or maybe, those kinda people can please not watch the movie at all so that they do not disturb me when I am watching one. I normally turn my phone silent and stow it away in bag so that even the blinking lights do not disturb me.
Atta girl
Well written! I experienced this and much more last evening. One of the few occasions when I didn’t speak up because there’s just no point! This is nothing but India’s good old culture: “Just because I’ve paid 200 bucks for my ticket, it’s my birthright to put 200 others to inconvenience.”
What worries me even more is that there will be few who will create a ruckus if you ask them to quiet down
And I can tell you there will be bloggers who will put all this down to the population density in India! I swear! I am still trying to get over that one!
I can so related to this. I hate it when people come late, attend phone calls and speak amongst themselves during the movie. I think its basic manners and etiquette that’s missing here !
” movie watching is a leisurely activity, and it is ok for people to come late as they have bought the tickets” – This speaks a lot about our mentality 😛
oh yes, indeed.
oops typo – Relate and not related !
I echo all these complaints. I get pissed off when some one talks in phone. The only thing which even beats this is a kid cryinggg and a parent not walking out 😦
I fought many times in theatres due to both reasons
good one for prompt Hrishikesh
Thank you Afshan,
Crying babies, and little ones who keep on asking for more popcorn or pepsi is another headache
I hate those interruptions in while watching cinema.. Just feel like taking those of throwing them away but that can become a costly experience :
So so true. Specially for serious movie watchers like us. And politely saying shh, or please continue the call outside takes a totally different turn here in Delhi, where the person in question either shouts back saying rudely – tu aage dekh or starts talking even more loudly. I have seen this in a normal screen, I have seen this in very high end theatre also.
And each time it has pissed me enough to give a hard stare and feel like punching the person. Some people can never understand what a serious business it is and what basic manners are.
such people are nuisance, no matter what! a good one!
Hmmmm…I agreed with some…disagreed with others…Watching a movie is a leisure..but we need to remember that we do it in a public place….there are some unsaid rules and guidelines…but if we break it down it really is equivalent to hitching a ride in the public bus….
Having said that I tend to go to movies, that I really want to watch either with very closed friends or alone:
1) Because I take my movies very seriously, I hate even missing the trailers
2) It lets me watch the movie and not worry about what the other guy thinks.
There are times without number I want to take someone’s phone and crush it under my foot – this would be one of them! Loved the opening paragraph – you got me!
How about this:
TRRRRIIINNNGGG…….
“HELLO… arey arey… KAISE HO…? HAAN BADE DINO BAAD BAAT HUI…” ( and I look back to almost facepalm the @$$# and I come to realize it is an Uncle and I just give a glance and stop) “…HEHEHAHAHAHEHEHEHAHAH…”
(the opposite person probably realized uncle was in the theatre….) “…HAAN BETA… MAIN MOVIE DEKHNE AAYA HU…… TITANIC…. TITANIC…. SHIP WALI…. ”
I turn my head back, trying to keep the calmest possible expression and say, “… Uncle, aap bahar jaakar baat karenge please…”
Result: The conversation still continues in whispers loud enough for the row above and below him to listen… And two more followed… 😀
PROBLEM: Yaar tum kitani baar kisi ko bolo ek cheez ke liye… i have seen people becoming vocal subtitles for their friends…!
Conclusion: LACK OF CINEMA MANNERS
I can relate to your experience. Movie watching for me is a serious business, I mean entertainment. I hate to miss even a minute of it! I believe, talking loudly in a cinema hall is simply not acceptable!
http://jensysg21.wordpress.com/2013/08/10/blushng/
Check this out 😉 😀