RAWALPINDI: Rose Cinema, once a landmark of Raja Bazaar before partition, has been razed by the Rawalpindi Municipal Corporation (RMC), as it plans to construct a parking plaza in its place.

Located on a two kanal plot near Fawara Chowk, adjacent to the Rawalpindi Teaching Hospital (RTH) in Raja Bazaar, the cinema house was established in 1919. After the partition, Rose Cinema, which became the property of the Rawalpindi Municipal Corporation, was leased out to Khawaja Sahadat. The lease expired in 1967, and was not later renewed.

In its prime, the building attracted large crowds due to its location. Now, its wooden floor and abandoned ticket counter narrate the stories of the cinema’s golden days, but this too will soon vanish, and the cinema will probably only survive in pictures of the old garrison city.

On the other hand, old cinema houses were being pulled down across the city. Novelty Cinema in Kashmiri Bazaar was razed years ago. Gulistan Cinema at Committee Chowk was turned into a commercial plaza. Rose, Moti Mahal, Odeon and Plaza cinemas were partially closed due to fewer visitors. In Saddar, Ciros Cinema is open to the public but it has become a place for ‘stage shows’.

Cinema established in 1919 had been termed ‘dangerous’ due to its dilapidated state

When contacted, Rawalpindi Municipal Corporation (RMC) Chief Municipal Officer Imran Ali said that the dilapidated building of Rose Cinema located at Fawara Chowk was demolished by the authorities after a legal battle.

“Dozens of cases had been pending in the Lahore High Court regarding this property for a long time. A few days ago, the Lahore High Court Rawalpindi bench disposed of all the cases regarding Rose Cinema and sent two writ petitions to the Additional Commissioner Revenue Rawalpindi,” he said.

He said that the additional commissioner, after hearing all the parties, decided in favour of the municipal corporation and disposed of the writ petition.

According to the decision, he said, the tenants occupying the building before 2019 were declared illegal and the municipal corporation was allowed to demolish the building. He said that in 2021, a six-member committee had declared this structure a dangerous building, calling it a danger to human lives.

According to the official, the municipal corporation, with the help of heavy machinery, worked for 18 hours, and the building was demolished in an operation that continued for an extended period of time.

About the future plan, he said that the Rawalpindi Municipal Corporation would soon construct a commercial plaza, including a parking space, at this place; however, the final decision will be taken soon in a meeting likely to be chaired by the Rawalpindi commissioner. However, he was not aware of the move to hand over the cinema land to the adjacent Rawalpindi Teaching Hospital. There were many local politicians of the ruling PML-N who, before the 2018 elections, suggested that the provincial government hand over the land to the hospital so it could be expanded for the people’s welfare.

Published in Dawn, May 19th, 2025