Kalki 2898 AD - Famous Theater Owner Cries Foul
With the release of kalki 2898 AD this week, renowned theatre owner Manoj Desai, who manages maratha Mandir and Gaiety-Galaxy in Mumbai, is returning. The distributors, he says, are refusing to allow him to begin taking reservations for tickets at his theatres.
In Mumbai, distributors are not taking reservations in advance for kalki 2898 AD. Manoj Desai finds this upsetting. This has happened with other prabhas films as well. The Salaar problem was the same. Bookings for just 3D performances, he claims, are permitted. He discussed the issue with Prabhas's close associate. There are just two days remaining, and reservations are still not being accepted. Because the ticket costs at his theatres are so low, he claims that distributors want to profit more from multiplexes.
In Mumbai, distributors are not taking reservations in advance for kalki 2898 AD. Manoj Desai finds this upsetting. This has happened with other prabhas films as well. The Salaar problem was the same. Bookings for just 3D performances, he claims, are permitted. He discussed the issue with Prabhas's close associate. There are just two days remaining, and reservations are still not being accepted. Because the ticket costs at his theatres are so low, he claims that distributors want to profit more from multiplexes.
According to Desai, 2024 hasn't been easy for single-screen exhibitors thus far. They are expecting a change of events with kalki 2898 AD. Hopefully, this can be rectified quickly. At 11:15 p.m. on Monday, kalki 2898 AD had sold 29,500 tickets at PVRInox and Cinepolis, the top three national chains. Cinepolis sold 7,200 seats, while PVRInox sold 22,300. On june 27, kalki, from Anil Thadani's AA Films, would be released in North india with a target of 3500 screens (or 3250 in Hindi). On sunday night, advance reservations for the hindi version went live, and the reaction was stronger than anticipated.
Kalki could surprise everyone at the movie office in hindi markets if this trend keeps up. In less than 12 hours, Sanjay Cineplex in bihar sold over 300 tickets, indicating a high level of interest in the movie. The world cup semifinal featuring india on thursday night may have an impact on the attendance of evening and nighttime shows.
Positive reviews, meanwhile, may still help the movie come very close to crossing the Rs 25 crore threshold. Although it's early, there is optimism that the momentum will build on tuesday and wednesday to reach the anticipated figures. Given that kalki has a weekend ahead of it and will run for two weeks at the box office, any start around the Rs 20 crore level would be ideal for the hindi picture.