Veteran Telugu director K. Raghavendra Rao has opened up on the issue of ticket rates in Andhra Pradesh. Expressing his displeasure regarding the Andhra Pradesh government’s stand on the issue, the director appealed to the AP Chief Minister to reconsider the Bill passed on the issue.
In a carefully worded letter, the senior filmmaker appealed to Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy to reconsider the government’s stand on the reduction of ticket admission rates in the cinema halls.
“With the existing pandemic-related problems, the film industry sees only 10-20 per cent success ratio. Hundreds of families depend on that percentage of success. Distributors, traders, theatre owners, and many others survive on this little success,” Rao said.
About online movie ticketing, Rao wrote, “What if influenced people freeze the online tickets and sell in the black market? There are possibilities, right? So, I’m requesting the government to reconsider the decisions taken about online booking system.”
The popular director further suggested that the government should officially increase ticket rates, at least for the first week of any movie release, which would only help them generate more revenue from the taxes.
He urged the Andhra Pradesh government to do justice to the industry. Raghavendra Rao is among the very few celebrities who have openly criticised the state government on this issue.
