In the 1970s, when Pakistani cinema was at its peak, going to the movies was a major part of urban life in Lahore. A Los Angeles Times retrospective records that at cinemas such as the Odeon, ticket queues snaked from the box-office window along the pavement. Moviegoers arrived as much as two hours before a screening to secure tickets.
At the end of the line was a shared hour in a dark auditorium, watching the same story. Some people dressed for the occasion; others may have hurried from work, but all first waited for the ticket window. The rise and decline of an industry can be read not only in production totals, but also in the expectation once visible along Lahore's pavements.