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Popcorn and drinks are burning holes in pockets of filmgoers in metro cities

For a family of four to watch a movie with popcorn and drinks in a multiplex theatre, it can cost anywhere between Rs 2,000-3,000. For the same price, they can avail an OTT platform subscription of two years.

Written by : Nidharshana Raju
Edited by : Lakshmi Priya

How many of your belongings are you willing to sell to buy some popcorn at a multiplex? A recent Instagram reel by Tamil content creator Arjun Manohar shows him ready to give it all up — cash, car, jewellery, and the ownership deed of his house — just to get his hands on the popular theatre snack. For a tub of butter popcorn, he is even willing to avail a personal loan, and proceeds to declare bankruptcy in the caption. The reel, of course, is quite the exaggeration, but it has still been resonating with many people especially in the metro cities of southern states, for whom going to cinemas has now become an activity akin to burning a hole in your pocket.

Take Bengaluru for instance, where the price of popcorn in multiplexes range from Rs 420 to Rs 570 depending on the size of the tub. Guna, a Bengaluru resident, told TNM that she recently spent a total of Rs 500 to buy only a small tub of popcorn for her daughter and a coffee for herself. “Because of these prices, we only watch a couple of movies in the theatre, and depend on OTT platforms to watch other films,” she added.

Filmgoers in Chennai and Hyderabad are also similarly disgruntled, and definitely not without reason. Across these cities, on an average, a standard (450ml) coke is priced at Rs 173 before taxes and the charge of a medium popcorn is over Rs 300. A puff costs more than Rs 100 at an outlet of the PVR Inox, currently one of the largest multiplex chains in India following the recent merger between PVR Cinemas and INOX Leisure. Besides, as a majority of multiplexes are housed in high-end shopping malls, the parking charges in addition to the expenditure of commuting to and from the premises also add to the unending expenses of watching a film.

This means that for a typical family of four to watch a movie in a multiplex theatre, it can cost anywhere between Rs 2,000-3,000 depending on how much food they are willing to share. For the same price, they can avail an Amazon Prime Video subscription of two years.

Tirupur Subramanian, head of Tamil Nadu’s Theatre Association, is of the opinion that the prices for facilities such as snacks and parking cannot be standardised, because each establishment fixes these charges based on their own infrastructure and administrative expenditure. He also believes that people have the option to simply not buy snacks at theatres, as it is not a “compulsory expense”.

Several filmgoers, however, pointed out to TNM that it is often impossible not to purchase a snack while at the movies, especially when they are accompanied by their child(ren). “Also, if snacks are to be regarded as an optional expense, we should be allowed to bring our own snacks to the theatres,” said Dharma Chandru, a Chennai resident.

Besides, visitors of smaller multiplexes and single screen theatres are paying between Rs 70 to Rs 250 for different sizes of popcorn, and between Rs 45 to Rs 90 for different volumes of coke. When compared to giant multiplexes, this is a difference of at least a couple hundred rupees.

So why can’t people just go to the smaller theatres, one may ask. But it is not like they are spoiled for choice, as the rapid expansion of giant multiplex chains in the south has increasingly been forcing single screen and smaller multiplexes out of business. PVR’s 2018 acquisition of the SPI or Sathyam Cinemas, which was one of the largest multiplex chains in the south until then, and Bengaluru’s Rex Cinema Hall are prominent examples. Several single screen theatres, such as the Everest and Kapali theatres in Bengaluru, were shut down in the past decade. Meanwhile, PVR crossed the 100-screens milestone in Chennai alone in March this year, following which they launched a new seven-screen multiplex at Global Mall in Bengaluru.

Read: End of an era: Chennai's Agastya Theatre joins list of single screens that have shut

Wildly fluctuating ticket rates

In Bengaluru, the issue is not just with the snacks. Much like the rains that come and go at will, the ticketing charges also tend to fluctuate at alarming rates in the city. Considering Karnataka doesn’t have a regulatory body to limit the cost of tickets, the situation is such that the metro city residents are often forced to take a rain check on their weekend plans at the cinemas.

A spokesperson from the Kannada film industry told TNM it is a common practice for multiplexes to hike ticket prices during the weekends, and even after the first few days of release. “On an average, for a high budget film of over Rs 400 crore, the ticket prices in Bengaluru will be between Rs 400 to 500. For a low budget film, the price will be between Rs 200 to 250, without factoring in any later hikes. Recliner seats and other premium facilities offered in some theatres come with additional charges,” they said. 

Bengaluru resident Vinayakam told TNM that he recently spent Rs 400 per ticket for recliner seats to watch a low budget film. Guna, who recently watched The Little Mermaid with her daughter in a multiplex, said she had decided to go on a weekday to avoid price hikes, but still ended up paying Rs 266 per ticket.

Like in Bengaluru, ticket prices in multiplexes fluctuate in Hyderabad as well, with the hikes often depending on the budget of the film.

Chennai, however, has a different policy in this regard. All cinemas in the city — whether they be PVR or an independent single screen theatre — are only allowed to charge Rs 190 per ticket (plus tax of Rs 30) for a movie. A similar cap of Rs 350 per ticket (plus tax of Rs 30) is in place for the more high-end IMAX screens as well. These prices apply to every theatre, irrespective of luxuries such as reclining seats that some might provide.

Popcorn prices are impacting theatres

While the post pandemic years have provided some respite to theatre owners in general, the sky-rocketing prices of theatre snacks are contributing to a large-scale resistance, especially from the middle class, said Tirupur Subramanian. “Many people are now preferring to spend on OTT subscriptions. Compared to five years ago in 2017, the turnout in Tamil Nadu’s theatres is notably low. The landscape is changing.” It isn’t surprising then that PVR Cinemas on Wednesday, July 12 announced two new offers that they claim to be reasonably priced — (1) Rs 99 each for a samosa, burger, or a combination of a pepsi (450 ml) and a regular sandwich between 9 am and 6 pm on weekdays, and (2) unlimited popcorn and free pepsi refills from Friday through Sunday. The prices of the “bottomless” popcorn and pepsi, however, have not been specified.

On July 11, the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council announced a reduction in tax on the food items sold at theatres from 18% to 5%. This, however, entails no resolve to people visiting multiplexes such as the PVR. After the GST Council’s announcement, a spokesperson from PVR Cinemas told the media that they have already been charging only 5% GST on food and beverages, like the restaurants. So at PVR, filmgoers will have to continue spending just as much on food.

(Inputs from Akchayaa Rajkumar and Anjana Meenakshi)

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