Minerva Theatre, as we know it today, was renovated to its present size in March 1972. At that time, almost three decades ago, it was one of the few 70 mm theatres in Mumbai.
Soon, it had another claim to fame - the theatre became famous as the premiere cinema house for Sholay, which ran there for five consecutive years, three years of regular shows and two years of matinee shows, from August 1975 onwards.
Located in the heart of downtown Mumbai, Minerva screens only Hindi films: "Sholay", "Lal Patthar", "Shaan", "Sita Aur Geeta", "Daag", "Pardes" and "Haseena Maan Jayegi" are a few of the famous hit films screened at this theatre over the years. Lal Patthar, like Sholay, also premiered at Minerva.
Minerva has a seating capacity of 1501, with a huge balcony comprising of 585 seats, and a stall with 916 seats. It is well known for good sound and is equipped with a DTS-6D digital sound system. The theatre is equipped with a Dolby CP 65 with DA 20 cinema processor. It has imported Photophone projectors and brand new JBL speakers with Pulz amplifiers and R&S surrounds.
On the subject of expansion, Mr. Parvez Mehra of Minerva says, "Plans are afoot to spread out into a multiplex but at the moment the situation is not very promising with film production being low. We are waiting to see whether more films reach the floor in the next two to three months."
What Mr. Mehra has to say about the DTS sound format is simple: DTS is excellent!
