Mumbai’s 100-Year-Old Alexandra Cinema Set for Demolition as Tower Plan Clears Hurdle

The cinema’s owner had approached the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) administration seeking the cancellation of the existing reservation for the theatre and the conversion of the land into a residential zone. However, the administration’s proposal to change the reservation did not receive approval from the Improvements Committee.

Improvements Committee chairperson Sandhya Doshi announced at Thursday’s committee meeting that the proposal had been approved. Under a provision of municipal law, any proposal that does not receive approval within 45 days is automatically deemed approved. The announcement was made on the basis of this provision.

Alexandra Cinema has remained closed since 2007. The owner argued that restarting operations was not economically viable, considering the present circumstances, the dilapidated condition of the building and the changes that have taken place in the entertainment sector.

The cinema’s closure and the proposed change in land use mark a significant development for Byculla, where several high-rise towers have been constructed in recent years. With Alexandra Cinema set to become history, another tower is expected to join the area’s changing skyline.

The decision, however, triggered objections from opposition members in the Improvements Committee. They alleged that proposals involving changes to land reservations were being approved in committee meetings without discussion. Accusing the committee chairperson and the deputy secretary of collusion, agitated opposition members staged a walkout during the meeting.

Sachin Padwal of the Uddhav Sena questioned why proposals that were automatically approved after 45 days were not placed before the BMC General Body meeting. His objection raised questions over the process through which such land-use changes were being approved.

With the reservation change now declared approved under the 45-day provision, the way has been cleared for the proposed redevelopment of the site of the century-old Alexandra Cinema into a residential property, marking another potential transformation in Byculla’s urban landscape.