Minister of Arts, Culture and Heritage Yumna Maumoon has stated that the renovated and modernised Olympus cinema will be reopened on December 16.
The redevelopment of the Olympus cinema is being carried out in two phases. The first phase involved renovating the building and making major changes to the ticket counter, corridor, and exterior of the building.
In response to a question posed by the Parliament regarding the completion of the cinema and the progress of the redevelopment project, Minister Yumna said the reopening of the Olympus has been delayed due to difficulties in procuring the necessary equipment. She said, however, efforts are being made to reopen the cinema on December 16, providing a platform will be established to showcase the talents of Maldivian artists.
Furthermore, Minister Yumna said that Olympus will have a digital cinema projector for film screening, and special rooms for music and dance practices. She said the cinema had to shut down and has not yet reopened since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Olympus is a historic building located in Male' City that has premiered numerous movies from the local film industry. The cinema has seen numerous renovations since it opened in 1959 and has continued to face issues of wear and tear due to the age of the building. The redevelopment of Olympus is carried out under the grant assistance of the government of India as part of the High-Impact Community Development Project (HICDP).