‘Kabali’ to get the biggest ever release in Kerala, craze increases

Rajinikanth’s ‘Kabali’, will get the widest ever release for a Tamil film in Kerala. The film, according to trade analysts, will be releasing on 306 screens in Kerala.

It will be legendary Malayalam superstar Mohanlal who will be releasing the film in the state.

Sources say, the demand for tickets in the state is unprecedented as tickets for most of the shows for the weekend have been sold in advance.

The craze is on-par with Tamilnadu, where ticket prices at multiplexes have been hiked, yet there is tremendous demand for tickets that are being sold in black.

Most fans of the superstar want to experience the ‘Rajni craze’ on the day of release, preferably the first day first show. But tickets for the morning shows on Friday, even those starting at 6-7AM in the morning were sold out in minutes.

“Most theatres across the state (Tamilnadu) have sold out tickets for the opening weekend. With the average (multiplex) ticket costing Rs 600, most ardent Rajinikanth fans are disappointed that they couldn’t afford the tickets on the first day,” trade analyst Trinath said.

IANS reports that a few fans of the superstar are disappointed with the pricing of tickets.

“We are used to paying Rs 120 for movie tickets. But this sudden exponential increase in ticket price is very unfair. The prices vary according to the show timings. Early morning shows are sold at Rs 500-600 and the prices are slashed through the course of the day” Santhosh Kumar, a second year college student, said.

However, a few fans have argued that the increased ticket rates is justified because a Rajnikanth film comes once in 2 years.

“We don’t have issues with the ticket prices. It’s once in two or three years, you get a Thalaivar (Rajinikanth’s) film. If you can’t shell out Rs 1,000 for your matinee idol, then what kind of a fan are you” asks Muralikrishna, a chartered accountant.

Although most theatres give preference to fan club members, this year they seem to have favoured companies.

“Across major multiplexes, tickets on the first day were booked by corporates. Some of these companies booked in bulk even before the online booking started. I somehow managed to get a ticket through a friend.

“But when I tried to book five tickets for my family just minutes after online bookings opened, it didn’t even go through” said Muralikrishna.

Directed by Pa. Ranjith, the film also stars Winston Chao, Radhika Apte, Dhansika, Dinesh Ravi, Kishore and a few others. The rest of the cast doesn’t matter though – it’s going to be Rajnikanth all the way for people in South India this weekend.