Tamil Nadu has restored 6am cinema screenings for newly released Tamil films after a three-year gap, with an amendment to the Tamil Nadu Cinemas (Regulation) Rules, 1957, allowing theatres to hold up to six shows a day during a film’s first week.
The revised provision also permits six daily shows on local festival days, public holidays, Saturdays and Sundays. Screenings can begin at 6am and continue until 2.30am the following day, according to the report on the government’s decision.
The move reverses the restrictions introduced in 2023, when the previous DMK government discontinued early-morning shows after a fan died during celebrations linked to the release of Ajithkumar’s Thunivu. At the time, law-and-order concerns led the state to permit special 9am shows only through individual government orders.
After the TVK government assumed office, it had increased the permitted number of daily shows for newly released Tamil films from four to five during the first seven days. Producers were previously required to obtain a separate government order for each film to screen a fifth special show. The latest amendment extends the concession to six shows without requiring the same film-by-film arrangement, as reported.
Chief minister C Joseph Vijay issued the order following requests from the Tamil Film Active Producers Association, the Tamil Film Producers Council and the Tamil Nadu Theatre and Multiplex Owners Association. The associations had submitted nine other demands to the government, according to the report.
The decision affects the operating schedules of cinemas and multiplexes, as well as the timing at which audiences can access major Tamil film releases. It also restores a screening window that had become a recurring point of negotiation between the state administration, producers and theatre owners after the 2023 restrictions.
The Tamil Nadu Film Producers Association welcomed the amendment, saying that films released at 6am in other states and overseas markets often generated reviews and audience discussion before viewers in Tamil Nadu could watch them. The association said the earlier arrangement had denied Tamil films a level playing field and welcomed the return of simultaneous screenings across markets.
Under the amended rules, the expanded schedule applies to newly released Tamil films during their first week and to specified holidays and weekends. The reported order does not indicate any further changes to the safety and law-and-order responsibilities governing cinema venues.
