Ahead of the big lineup of big-budget Telugu films scheduled for release in the coming weeks, the Andhra Pradesh High Court suspended the state government’s order on the reduction of ticket prices in cinema halls and theatres, on Tuesday, as per an IANS report.
The court order came after a petition was filed by the theatre owners, which challenged the Andhra Pradesh government’s Order No.35 to reduce the ticket prices, issued in April.
The April order had also advised theatre management on making provisions for online ticketing which should not be more than the maximum permissible admission rate for that class in that particular area. In a follow-up, in November, the Andhra Pradesh government, led by Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, had passed a bill forbidding the over-the-counter sale of movie tickets, making it mandatory to sell them only through the State-run online booking platform. Also curbing the number of shows per day to four, the government noted that films will be screened only during prescribed timings and tickets will be sold at prices fixed by the government.
However, during the Tuesday hearing, theatre owners argued that the government intervening in the ticket prices was not “appropriate” and it is up to the theatre owners to decide on the prices. Subsequently, the court granted permission to sell the tickets at the old rates.
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It is to be noted that several members from the Telugu film industry, such as Chiranjeevi, Pawan Kalyan, among others had voiced their concern regarding the government move. In reply, the AP government had said that they had mooted the system since cinema halls have introduced an “exorbitant hike” in ticket prices ahead of big releases.
Big-budget Telugu films slated for release include Pushpa, RRR, Shyam Singha Roy, Bheemla Nayak and Radhe Shyam, all of which are awaiting releases in Christmas or Sankranthi 2022.