After my Old Delhi cinema halls post I remembered a theater that lay along my usual commute in Delhi when I was younger. The cinema hall was called Shalimar, located the Siddharth Enclave area near Ashram Chowk, and in my memory resembled a large shed with sloping asbestos (?) sheet roofing. I used to notice it often when passing over the flyover between Ashram Chowk and Bhogal/Jangpura. That flyover is still part of my usual commute, but I haven’t seen the theater since sometime in the 1980s or 90s.
I realized that this is simply because 4-story residences have been built along the flyover, obscuring views of the hall, and that it still exists. I decided to visit it and see what it looks like today. Turns out the theater is not in operation anymore, and lies disused other than as a parking lot. Luckily the interiors were accessible, but have been entirely stripped. Here are a few photos.
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Shalimar Cinema
Sarson ke Khet 
Shalimar cinema had shut down ages back. Even my dad, who came to Delhi in the 70s remembered it to have been closed even then. This is really beautiful. I wish they could all come back. There is also an old cinema callled Chanderlok in CR Park. wonder who owns this property
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You have remembered the days of my childhood and this cinema hall, whenever i was passed through this bridge my only curiosity
which film is on cinema.
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Even when I was in 8th, I saw few movies in this hall, such as AAli Baba challis chor, Izzat, Hasina Maan Jayegi, Devar to name a few I could remember. At that time in late sixties only two cinemas were there in South Delhi i.e., 1. Eros catering to high gentry & 2. Shalimar catering to mixed gentry, probably due to restricted access. I don’t know the reasons for its closer, probably due to disputes among its owners, or in loosing Hall, but still when I happens to pass on the old bridge, either to ashram or to Bhogal etc, I remember it, though now a days due to massive high rise residential construction, It is not visible,
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Staying at Siddharth Extension, I cross Shalimar Cinema very often. Now the structure has totally crumbled down. Some dilapidated remains of walls, their plaster stripped and bricks naked, still stand amidst a chaos of parked vehicles. I could recall that till 5-6 years back morning shows used to run. The neglected, paint-less slot for the poster still used to show posters of films, but they were C-Grade soft porno films. I don’t remember when the desolate hall stopped screening films and even the tattered posted were blown away by the wind. In a time which is changing rapidly, old memories have no place. And places that remind you of good old days, like Shalimar or other cinema halls of Delhi, turn into real estate.
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