In a setback for the makers of the film OG, the Telangana High Court has issued an interim suspension of the state government's memo that permitted a special premiere show and a hike in ticket prices for the movie.
The decision, handed down by Justice NV Shravan Kumar on Wednesday, puts an immediate halt to the government order issued on September 19.
That order had allowed a single special show at 9 PM on September 24 with a ticket price of Rs 800 (including GST).
It also granted permission to temporarily increase ticket prices for all regular shows from September 25 to October 4, with a hike of Rs 100 for single screens and Rs 150 for multiplexes.
This High Court ruling came in response to a petition challenging the government's memo.
The stay order has caused confusion and frustration, particularly among fans who had already booked tickets at the enhanced rates for the premiere show and the opening week.
The High Court's decision means that tickets must now be sold at standard prices, and the special shows are in jeopardy.
This legal setback is a significant development, especially given the immense hype and record-breaking advance bookings for the film.
While the producers and distributors are expected to take further legal recourse, the immediate impact is a major disruption to the film's highly anticipated release in Telangana.
The next hearing on the case is reportedly scheduled for October 9, leaving the situation in a state of limbo for the time being. The film team and distributors are expected to challenge the ruling.
The move to allow increased ticket prices is a common practice for high-budget, tentpole films in the Telugu film industry. It is aimed at helping producers recover their significant production costs during the crucial first few days of a film's release, especially for projects with immense fan anticipation.
Meanwhile, Pawan Kalyan starrer will release on September 25 in all South Indian languages as well as Hindi. The movie also stars Emraan Hashmi and Priyanka Mohan in lead roles. Read more about OG here.
