Did Pawan Kalyan propose exorbitant ticket prices for Kalki 2898 AD? Producer Ashwini Dutt breaks silence

A section of the media reported that Telugu superstar Pawan Kalyan, who now holds the office of the Deputy Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, offered to approve a massive hike in ticket prices for the latest Telugu blockbuster Kalki 2898 AD.

Earlier, some reports claimed that Pawan informed producer Chalasani Ashwini Dutt that he could allow him to charge as much as Rs 1000 per ticket for Kalki 2898 AD, similar to the ticket prices in North Indian multiplexes.

On Friday, Ashwini Dutt issued a statement rubbishing the reports. He claimed that his words were taken out of context and presented in a way that created misinformation about the increase in ticket prices. "Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan intends to find a permanent solution to the matter, which doesn't require producers to go to the government every time to seek special permission to increase ticket prices," said Ashwini.

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At the moment, barring Karnataka, other state governments in South India, including Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and the Telugu states, have strong control over movie ticket rates. The Andhra Pradesh government may make exceptions for high-budget movies and allow the producers to sell tickets at a moderately higher price for the first couple of weeks to recoup their investments. This existing policy puts producers at the mercy of the government. It's noteworthy that members of the Telugu film fraternity had opposed the previous government on this matter, with many big productions reporting losses in Andhra Pradesh despite running to packed houses.

With Pawan as the Deputy Chief Minister, producers are hopeful that they will find an amicable solution that will give them greater autonomy to decide ticket prices.

Kalki 2898 AD, starring Prabhas, Kamal Haasan, and Amitabh Bachchan, has already breached the Rs 700 crore mark at the global box office. The film is expected to earn nearly Rs 1000 crore in ticket sales by the end of its theatrical run.

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