While Pongal festival is still a few days away, festivities have already begun in the city movie theatres as some of the most awaited blockbusters scheduled for Pongal, hit the screens on Friday.
The films Jilla, starring actor Vijay and Malayalam matinee idol Mohanlal, and Ajit-starrer Veeram that were released at multiple screens across the city, brought in thousands of fans of the top actors to the theatres early on Friday. The fans celebrated the first shows with fire crackers, milk abishÂekÂams, and distributed sweÂets to all those who had gone to attend the shows. Police were posted in streÂngth at several theatres where the movies were reÂleased to ensure that no untoward incidents took place.
Sources in the film industry said tickets were booÂked much in advance for these films in some of the theatres and sold for prices up to Rs500 per ticket and even more in some cases.
In Coimbatore, school and college students and women trooped into theatres to watch the first show of their favourite stars’ movies. Crackers were burst, festoons adorÂned the streets, life-size cut-outs dazzled. And the banners of Ajith and Vijay were bathed in milk and adorned with garlands.
Clearly, it was like another Deepavali just ahead of Pongal. In the pre-dawn hours, the roads leading to Karpagam complex on 100 feet road, Baba complex at Flower Market, K.G. complex near Race Course and Senthil complex at Gandhipuram, Central road, on the Mettupalayam road, were choked with motorbikes and cars.
For the first time, there was a sizeable number of women for the pre-dawn show of Ajith-starrer Veeram in the theatres. “The movie is a masala entertainer with a family story, including sentiments, comedy and action. Hence, it was not the usual Ajith movie – it’s something different," said Praveena, a final-year college student.
“I woke up at 3 am to go to the theatre and watch Ajith’s movie,” beamed Mohammed Fahim, a class 6 student of a city school. “It was real good fun,” he says. For the “fun”, the fans had to pay an exorbitant price ranging from Rs350 to Rs1,000.
Vijay fans club president Yuvaraj said Jilla was a mega entertainer. There was huge response and many theatres were screening in the western region of Tamil Nadu. The movie had a mixed audience of Keralites and locals, he said.
The two films are booked out till this weekend. Central theatre manager Suburamaniam said there were no tickets for the next three days. “Both Vijay and Ajith movie shows are running houseful and it’s double the business compared to Deepavali. We have deployed additional workers to manage the crowds,” he said.
The film distributors are gloating over the good opening. “Till Pongal holidays, Veeram movie ticket is almost blocked and expected to be houseful for continuous days,’ said Dhinakar Perumal, a film distributor.
