ABSTRACT
Chapter 5 discussed environmental aspects of the multiplex in terms of the neighbourhoods where multiplexes are located. We demonstrated how these locations were conceived in relation to catchment and to the networks of infrastructure that linked together nodes of the New Economy. In this chapter we examine the architectural environment of the cinemas themselves. In so doing, our attention turns more explicitly to the deployment of space inside the multiplex. It is of primary concern of multiplex designers to anticipate the manner in which patrons will perceive and inhabit these buildings. As such, the functional form and visual aesthetics of the multiplex environment reveals much about the space that operators seek to create, and the kinds of urban sensibilities and taste cultures to which they cater. The careful design of all these aspects has numerous consequences for the patterns of leisure taking place within a multiplex. In this chapter we examine the iconic nature of multiplex architecture, both exterior and interior, before providing detailed accounts of specific examples of the Indian multiplex. Throughout our analysis, we remain interested in both the social production and social construction of the built environment, and in how these two aspects work together to generate spaces characteristic of urban leisure and consumption.
