TEHRAN -- There are not enough cinemas in Lorestan Province to meet the cultural needs of the people living there. Considering the fact that cultural and artistic centers, particularly cinemas, play a key role in filling the leisure time of the people, the residents of Lorestan Province are not provided with adequate facilities in this regard. There are only two cinemas in the provincial capital of Khorramabad for some 450,000 people who live in the city.

Speaking to IRNA, one of the Khorramabad residents said that the youth mostly spend their leisure time watching video films because there are not enough cinemas in the city. A resident of Kouhdasht, another provincial city, said that there is not even a single cinema in that city, adding that the youth of Kouhdasht have to travel to Khorramabad if they want to see any films.

According to the Director General of the Culture and Islamic Guidance Office in Lorestan Province Ali Moradi, shortage of cinemas in the province is a big cultural problem. Moradi told IRNA that the provincial Culture and Islamic Guidance Office strongly supports any investment made by the private sector in the establishment of cultural centers, particularly cinemas and theaters. Presently, there are only eight cinemas in Lorestan Province, which means that there is only one cinema for every 150,000 people in the province.

Boroujerd has two cinemas, Khorramabad has also two, and each of the cities of Aligoudarz, Doroud, Selseleh and Delfan has only one cinema. There is no cinema in the cities of Kouhdasht, Azna and Poldokhtar.