Producers Worried Over Exorbitant Rates For OG, While Telangana HC Suspends Hike
The official ticket rate was capped at ₹800, some distributors sold tickets for ₹2,000–₹5,000 in some Telangana theatres
Hyderabad: Pawan Kalyan’s much-awaited film, OG, has run into legal trouble in Telangana. The High Court has suspended the state government’s order permitting ticket price hikes and special shows. Justice N.V. Shravan Kumar’s directive effectively puts the government’s earlier approval on hold.
Producer S.K. Nayeem Mohammad has slammed the practice, urging state governments not to allow steep hikes that “ruin the Telugu film industry.” He alleged that while the official ticket rate was capped at ₹800, some distributors sold tickets for ₹2,000–₹5,000 in some Telangana theatres to cash in on the frenzy. “Distributors are even setting revenue targets of ₹1 crore in areas like Kukatpally and RTC Crossroads. Online booking shows ‘full’ status, but some tickets are diverted and sold offline at inflated prices at some places,” he claimed.
Producer M.V. Krishna Rao raised concerns for audiences, saying middle- and lower-middle-class fans are being fleeced. “A family spending ₹12,000 on four tickets for a star film won’t have money left to watch other movies for months. This will hurt smaller films and choke the industry,” he warned.
Reports suggest that black marketing is also rampant in Andhra Pradesh, where tickets are allegedly being sold for ₹2,500–₹5,000, despite the official price being significantly higher at ₹1,000 per head. Rao added that both state governments risk losing tax revenue if they fail to investigate and address the illegal markups.
According to the petitioner in the Telangana HC, only the Hyderabad Police Commissioner and district Collectors have the authority to approve ticket hikes, meaning the government’s earlier order may have been issued without jurisdiction. The likely way forward, sources say, is for local authorities to issue fresh approvals to regularize higher ticket prices.
For now, with OG's hype at an all-time high, both fans and distributors are anxiously awaiting clarity on refunds, revised ticketing, and the next legal move. "We wish star-studded movies had affordable tickets like in Chennai, where they are not above ₹180 even in multiplexes, but our government is quite magnanimous, which is quite unfortunate," concludes Krishna Rao.
