Straight Talk! Movie Ticket Price hike will hurt Kollywood more 

After much deliberation the government of Tamil Nadu has passed the order for theaters to hike the ticket prices by 25 percent of the existing rates with the entertainment tax inclusive and the GST to be added on top.  The move seems to be welcomed by the multiplexes while single screens and theater complex owners are claiming that they have been given a raw deal and are contemplating protests.

As far as the movie goers are concerned, they have to dig deeper into their pockets to shell the extra bucks on top of the parking and concession prices.  The pinch will be felt more by the family audience than the single visitors.  For films of the few superstars and mass heroes fans would be more than willing to shell out any amount to support their idols, but it is the movies with good content and without a front line hero that will eventually  have lesser takers than the existing sparse numbers. 

Granted the movie ticket prices have remained unchanged for many years and with operational costs rising the hike is somewhat justified.  The government and the film fraternity should push for bringing in a system where there is flexi pricing for films according to content to help the small films recoup their investments and for encouraging the making of quality films.  Unless the thought process moves in that direction the price hike might well turn into more of a bane than a boon for Tamil cinema.