Many single screens in Hyderabad sell tickets at higher-than-regular rates. They are treated as multiplexes for all practical purposes. Why does the Telangana government allow them to charge more from movie-goers?
As many as ten two-screen theatres in Hyderabad charge higher rates. As per regulations, a complex can be considered a multiplex only if it houses at least three screens. The Devi-Sudarshan complex, for example, doesn't satisfy this rule, for example. Yet, they have been charging at least Rs 50 more.
An exhibitor, in a recent interview, stated that single screens that meet most of the criteria specified for multiplexes have been permitted to charge more. "Our screens satisfy all the criteria related to seating capacity, projection quality, sound quality, etc," he added.
However, there is a wedge between claims and reality. "Devi and Sudarshan theatres in Hyderabad will go bankrupt if they continue to sell tickets at Rs 295. PVR-Inox and AMB Classic screens at RTC X Roads will finish them by grabbing their upper-class viewers eventually unless they catch up on the maintenance front. As things stand, these screens don't maintain their toilets properly, their seats are poor, etc," says Deepak Kodela, box office tracker.
