As Baahubali 2: The Conclusion is all set for a release on April 28, there’s been a great deal of pre-release buzz surrounding the film. With most avid Telugu moviegoers keen to watch the first show of the film, tickets are so much in demand that single screens and multiplexes across the Nizam region are having the first show of the film on the night of April 27 itself!
Even in the city, on Wednesday morning, as the ticket counters at Prasads Multiplex opened, many waited in queues from as early as 6 am, despite the gates of the mall being opened only at 9 am, and videos showing the rush went viral online. Also, several web portals registered a heavy rush of pre-release bookings and the film now holds a record for that too!
Everyone realises that this is the last opportunity they get to cash in on the craze for the film, as merchandise and memorabilia are being sold online just in time for the film’s release. The most interesting and notorious of them all, was the website www.NewTickets.in, a fake website that fleeced hundreds of people and lured them into buying non-existent tickets in over 55 screens!
The management of a multiplex lodged a complaint that they hadn’t in any way tied up with the website and eventually the Telangana CID and Cyber Crime department got involved when several people reported that tickets that were booked still appeared to be available when they checked again. The site was being run from Dubai. While it is not known how many people booked tickets on the fake site, several of them would not even have known that they were cheated until they reached the theatres!
Meanwhile, the ticket prices of the film have been skyrocketing, leaving many shocked. A few cinegoers filed complaints with the consumer forum, citing that a couple of multiplexes are forcing people to buy couple tickets as opposed to single tickets, and some are going as far as to make a popcorn and cool drink combo compulsory!
