The distributor and producer of the recently released Telugu movie ‘HanuMan’ – Mythri Movies – filed a complaint against some of the theatre owners for indulging in unfair theatre practices. The distributor and producer Niranjan Reddy filed a complaint with the Telugu Film Producers Council (TFPC). The filmmaker has alleged that some of the theatre owners which reportedly include Nizam theatre owners, didn’t honour the agreement and failed to screen HanuMan in their theatres.
According to a statement released to the press by the TFPC, Mythri Movies Distributors LLP (the distributor) had signed an agreement with some theatres in Telangana to screen HanuMan from 12 January onwards. However, some theatres have not honoured their agreements and did not screen the film in the Nizam area theatres.
It is alleged that the theatre owners instead of screening HanuMan, screened another movie, ‘Guntur Kaaram’.
A statement from the council read, “Some exhibitors screened ‘Guntur Kaaram’ instead of ‘Hanu Man’ from January 12 which goes against the spirit of agreement between distributors and exhibitors. Which is unfortunate and unwarranted.”
“‘Guntur Kaaram’ was released by producer-turned-distributor Dil Raju in the Telangana region with the support of another big gun Sunil Narang. Both violated all the rules to make more money. Dil Raju is the president of the Telugu Film Chamber of Commerce and Sunil Narang is the president of the Telangana Film Chamber of Commerce. Despite holding responsible positions in trade bodies, they are unfortunately breaking the set rules,” a source was quoted as saying in a Deccan Chronicle report.
According to their statement, the TFPC has instructed these theatres to immediately start screening the film and bear the losses incurred by the makers up to this point.
The statement added, “Some exhibitors in Parigi, Jadcherla, and other centers have to begin screening of ‘Hanuman’ immediately and compensate for the losses incurred by Hanuman distributors. We condemn such unethical practices since it doesn’t augur well for the industry.”
The TFPC argued that such actions pose a threat to the survival of the Telugu film industry. They wrote, “The Telugu Film Producers Council strongly condemns the theatres and their unethical acts. Such moves affect the entire Telugu film industry which runs based on faith, morality, and justice. Theatres that have acted contrary to this need to respect their agreements immediately and offer justice to the film HanuMan.”
The statement was signed by President Damodar Prasad and office-bearers, Prasanna Kumar, and YVS Choudhury.
As per reports, the film was already facing issues regarding the lack of theatre allocations in the state of Telangana. However, the movie has been well received at the box office and getting strong buzz on social media platforms. As per reports, the team of ‘HanuMan’ has already donated Rs 14 lakh from their first day collection. Earlier, the makers had announced that for every ticket bought, Rs 5 from it will go as a donation to the Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra for Ram Mandir in Ayodhya.
