Daylight robbery by film exhibitors

This is with reference to the report 'Ticket rates 40 percent up for Mahesh Babu starrer Maharishi' (THI, May 8). A new movie titled 'Maharshi' starring renowned Telugu actor Mahesh Babu is set to hit the screens tomorrow. While it is a joyous moment for all his die-hard fans, the average cine-goer is appalled by the brazen ticket price hike by the theatre managements, in complete contravention of all the rules.

It is to be noted that the Telangana Cinematography Minister has clarified on Tuesday that no permission was granted to the theatres to increase the ticket price. This suggests that the distributors and producers of the movie are openly defying the rules and fleecing the cinephiles in broad daylight. Of late, these illegal hikes have become the norm whenever any superstar's film releases.

On top of all this, the benefit of the GST rate cut on movies, that was announced by the Prime Minister, has not been passed on to the cine-goers. Hope the officials concerned act at least now and stop this broad day light loot.

-Dr N Ratan Prasad Reddy, Associate Scientist, Vivo Biotech, Gazwel