Canada cinema halts screening of Indian films after arson attempt, shooting

A movie theatre in Canada’s Ontario has cancelled several Indian film screenings after being targeted in two separate incidents of arson and gunfire over the past week. ‘Film.ca Cinemas’ in Oakville stated that the attacks were connected to its showings of South Asian films, leading the theatre to withdraw Rishab Shetty’s ‘Kantara: A Legend Chapter 1’ and Pawan Kalyan’s ‘They Call Him OG’ from its lineup.

“Two serious incidents have recently occurred at our theatre property: an arson attempt and the discharging of a handgun. Both took place during the overnight hours outside the front doors while the theatre was closed for business. No one was injured in either case,” read the theatre’s release.

“Evidence seems to show that the participation in the exhibition of South Asian films has led to these incidents at our theatre and other theatres across the GTA, out of an abundance of caution, we have made the decision that the safety of guests and our cast require us to withdraw ourselves from screenings of ‘Kantara: A Legend Chapter 1’, ‘They Call Him OG’, and all future South Asian films indefinitely. We deeply apologise to our community,” the release read.

Jeff Knoll, CEO of Film.Ca Cinemas said, “As these incidents have occurred outside during our overnight hours, we believe that the intention is to cause property damage that will result in forcing our hand to close our doors. We remain open for business and will fully cooperate with and assist law enforcement in retrieving any information about the perpetrator and conspirator and bringing them to justice-because this just cannot stand.” 

A security camera video shared by Film.ca shows a grey SUV arriving at the theatre around 2 am. A hooded individual steps out, appears to survey the entrance, and then drives away. The same vehicle is seen returning to the parking lot twice more. 

At about 5.15 am, a white SUV pulls in. Soon after, two people approach the theatre doors carrying red jerrycans, pour out liquid, and ignite it by tossing a lit match onto the ground.