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Scene 1: Well before the train pulls into the station, passengers who have to disembark make their way to the door, stand in an orderly fashion with their luggage and step out quickly. Logical, since the train stops only for a limited period of time.
Scene 2: After the aircraft lands on the runway, taxis and almost comes to a halt, some passengers stand up. This is immediately followed by an announcement requesting passengers to remain seated till the plane comes to a complete halt. As soon as the doors open, there is a mad scramble to extract the cabin baggage and rush out as if the plane was on fire or that continuing for a few more moments in a civil manner allowing passengers to disembark in the order in which they were seated would lead to life threatening consequences. Inexplicable, since the plane is in no seeming hurry to depart.
Scene 3: A music concert by students is in progress in a school. At the end of the event a teacher walks on to the stage and begins introducing the children. The students are named one by one, the ones who sang, the ones who were part of the orchestra, the ones who were part of the chorus, the ones who choreographed, the ones who compered and the ones who worked backstage. Parents clap enthusiastically, a little more loudly when their child is named and they leave when it is announced that the event has come to an end.
Scene 4: After the last scene of a play is enacted by professionals, the cast and crew come back on stage. As they are introduced, the audience claps energetically and the team takes a bow. The stage lights dim, curtains fall and then the audience gets up and leaves the hall.
Now picturise a scenario at a movie theatre as the final scene of a movie ends. The carefully composed end credits sequence begins its slow upward glide telling you exactly who put this together. At that critical moment, the theatre switches on the lights. The audience takes the cue, jolts upright heroically and begin marching out like cops in movies rushing out of the police station to nab the culprits. In their chatter and exit amidst the bright lights, the end credits – the cinematic equivalent of a bow after a performance – are left abandoned, unacknowledged and disrespected.
A line attributed to Ajit, the popular Hindi film villain of yesteryears, pertains to his usage of the word liquid oxygen. A loose translation would be “Put the scoundrel in liquid oxygen. The liquid will not let him live and the oxygen will not let him die”. In this context, theatre-goers argue that they get up and leave since the theatre switched on the lights and the theatre management reckons that since people are leaving, they switch on the lights to prevent accidents. This creates a self-fulfilling loop.
Films are certified by the Central Board of Film Certification end to end, from the first title card when the film begins till the last one after the film ends. Therefore, theatres have no business to curtail or incite exit before the entire duration of the film, end credits included. None of the arguments – the need for a quicker turnaround time between shows or that people don’t really care or that cultural conditioning forces them to treat this like a journey where one has reached the destination- hold against the larger point of being sensitive and respectful to the hundreds or sometimes thousands of people who have toiled hard to present the film. If theatres can keep their lights dimmed for 3 hours nothing should prevent them from leaving it dim for three more minutes to honour the people who made it happen. Of course, the cleaning staff will have to wait for some more time to brush off the popcorn before the next show begins. The audience is advised at the beginning of the film to turn their phones silent. A similar guidance to remain seated till the end credits roll can help in building awareness and sensitising the audience.
So, the next time end credits appear on screen, stay seated, let the credits roll, give the crew the one thing they have earned- their moment of acknowledgement. If you choose to stride out nonchalantly unmindful of the end credits, do remember – in this scene – the theatre is the main villain and you are an unwitting accomplice.
It’s THE END, only when the title card says so or fades to black.
These pieces are being published as they have been received – they have not been edited/fact-checked by ThePrint.