Explainer: Why Telugu Film Industry Is Unhappy With Andhra Pradesh Government's Fixed Price Cap On Movie Tickets

The Telugu film industry has been growing leaps and bounds in its reach lately. From producing films across India to actors dubbing in Hindi on their own. However, a very strong market for Telugu cinema has been facing a roadblock for almost a year. The Andhra Pradesh Government introduced the fixed ticket price system on April 8, 2021 in the Government Order (GO) 35. The fixed price made it mandatory for all multiplexes, AC and Non AC theatres. What followed was a disagreement between the government and the AP theatres owners, which resulted in many cinema halls being shut, causing severe loss to Tollywood film producers.

On February 10, 2022, filmmakers SS Rajamouli, Koratala Siva and actors Chiranjeevi, Mahesh Babu and Prabhas met CM Jagan to discuss the ticket price issue and come up with a solution to avoid any further loss to the Telugu film industry. The meeting between the Telugu film industry's stalwarts and the Chief Minister was initiated by Minister of Cinematography Perni Nani. Jagan assured the Tollywood fraternity members that an amicable decision will soon be taken.

GO On Fixed Price On Movie Tickets

According to the government order 35, all theatres, multiplexes, AC and Non-ac theatres will have a fixed price of the tickets as decided by the government. These theatres which fall within state municipality, municipal corporation, nagar panchayat and gram panchayat, the government has fixed prices within the  category of economy class, premium and deluxe class. For the multiplexes in the Municipal Corporation area, the ticket fare has to be between Rs 75 to Rs 250. In AC and non-AC theatres, the ticket price has to be between Rs 20 to Rs 100. In the Gram Panchayat areas, the economy class has been fixed at the ticket price of Rs 5 in the non-ac theatres. The order also says that the maximum retail price (MRP) of any item cannot be increased while selling refreshments to the customers.


The Theatre Owners Oppose

After the government order was made public, as many as 950 theatre owners expressed their disagreement over the matter. The Andhra Pradesh Cine Exhibitor Association has said that the theatres should be given free will in deciding the ticket prices as this GO is not profitable for them. They have also called fixing prices according to class an unfair decision since the AC and non-AC theatre owners have reworked on the infrastructure and facilities to match the multiplexes.


The Legal Course

After many theatre owners filed a petition in the High Court against this order, the court ordered the government to set up a committee which would have all stakeholders. After the government failed to do so, the GO was suspended on December 14, 2021.
 

The Crackdown on Theatres

After the GO was suspended, the government carried out surprise raids and shut down as many as 170 theatres. The government cited malpractices and running without renewed licence as the reason behind the crackdown. This move was condemned by actors, producers and directors. Now, the government has set up a committee to discuss the matter. On December 30 2021, 83 of the sealed theatres were allowed to function again.