Can PK’s Ustaad Get Nizam GO Despite the 90-Day Rule?

Despite Telangana High Court’s strong directives after Pushpa 2 stampede, big-budget films of Tollywood managed to secure special privileges from the state government with regard to ticket hikes and midnight premiere shows through political lobbying. Several writ petitions were also filed in public interest against the government’s orders. 

In the past one year, many star-studded films including the recent Sankranti biggies got the green signal to enhance ticket fares for the first ten days even after High Court’s repeated objections. Finally, the Court has taken suo moto cognizance and expressed displeasure over the matter before ruling that any future proposal to hike ticket prices must be placed in the public domain at least 90 days before a film’s release. 

Now that Pawan Kalyan’s Ustaad Bhagat Singh is getting ready for release on March 27, the issue of ticket prices is back to the fore among industry and political circles because this will be the first biggie to hit the screens after the High Court’s recent ruling. All eyes are now on the developments leading to the film’s release because many other big-ticket films are due for release in the coming months. 

Hari Hara Veera Mallu was the first big film to receive ticket price hikes after the Pushpa stampede issue and Game Changer’s court trouble over the hikes GO. However, legal complications followed after the court’s intervention in subsequent releases. This led to confusion over ticket pricing and non-compliance with court directives, creating a major mess within the state government.

Given Pawan Kalyan’s political affiliations and also the fact that Ustaad Bhagat Singh is backed by a marquee production house like Mythri Movie Makers, it would be interesting to see how the situation unfolds this time when the Court is hell bent on not entertaining any more petitions in favour of hikes or permissions.

As the film’s release is within the Court’s stipulated deadline, it remains to be seen how the makers of Ustaad Bhagat Singh approach the government to secure any special grants. Will the Pawan Kalyan factor work this time or not ? We need to wait a few more days.