Operators of the Film.ca Cinemas in Oakville have connected the attacks to the screening of South Asian films, and hence stopped listing Indian movies like Rishab Shetty’s Kantara: A Legend Chapter 1 and Pawan Kalyan’s They Call Him OG
A movie theatre in Canada’s Ontario stopped the screening of several Indian movies after it was set ablaze in an arson attack and a shooting incident on two separate occasions in the past week.
Operators of the Film.ca Cinemas in Oakville have connected the attacks to the screening of South Asian films, and hence stopped listing Indian movies like Rishab Shetty’s Kantara: A Legend Chapter 1 and Pawan Kalyan’s They Call Him OG.
The theatre first came under attack on September 25 at around 5:20 am. Halton police said that two suspects carrying red gas cans “used a flammable liquid to ignite a fire at the exterior entrance doors of the theatre.”
“The fire remained contained to the exterior of the property, with the theatre sustaining moderate damage,” police said.
Security camera footage shared online by Film.ca shows a grey SUV arriving around 2 a.m., with a hooded individual appearing to survey the theatre entrance before driving off. The same vehicle returned to the parking lot twice more. At approximately 5:15 a.m., a white SUV pulled in. Shortly after, two individuals approached the theatre doors and began pouring liquid from red jerrycans, then lit a match and set it on the ground.
Meanwhile, the second attack occurred on October 2, when an individual fired multiple shots through the entrance doors of the building at 1:50 am. Investigators believe both attacks were targeted and are asking anyone with information to contact the District Criminal Investigations Bureau.
“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,” the theatre said in a statement.
“We understand that these incidents may be connected to disagreements within the South Asian film industry. While we want to be clear that we do not wish to bow to threats, the situation has escalated to the point where we must take every precaution to protect our community,” it added.
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