Telangana govt faces backlash over Rs 600 premiere, ticket hike for Pawan Kalyan’s Hari Hara Veera Mallu

HYDERABAD: The Telangana government's approval of a special premiere and elevated ticket pricing for Hari Hara Veera Mallu, starring actor-politician Pawan Kalyan, has ignited criticism. This decision comes despite Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy’s earlier pledge in the Assembly to restrict such privileges following the Pushpa 2 promotional stampede, which resulted in a fatality and multiple injuries.

Although the Chief Minister had vowed to prevent benefit and premiere shows to ensure public safety, the film has been granted permission for a paid premiere on July 23, with tickets priced at Rs 600, not including GST. From July 24 to 27 (Days 1-4), single screens can charge an additional Rs 150 and multiplexes an additional Rs 200 over the base price (excluding GST), and from July 28 to August 2 (Days 5-10), the additional charges are Rs 106 for single screens and Rs 150 for multiplexes, excluding GST.

In Andhra Pradesh, the July 23 premiere show is also Rs 600 + GST. From July 24 to August 2 (Days 1-10), single screens can charge up to Rs 100 for lower class and Rs 150 for upper class, while multiplexes can charge up to Rs 200, with all prices including GST.

Adding to the controversy, the film’s producer AM Rathnam recently publicly acknowledged Rohin Reddy, reportedly a close aide to the Telangana Chief Minister, for enabling the clearances.

Hari Hara Veera Mallu: Part 1 – Sword vs Spirit is a Telugu period action-adventure film set in the 17th-century Mughal Empire. Directed by Krish Jagarlamudi and AM Jyothi Krishna, it stars Pawan Kalyan as the fictional outlaw Veera Mallu, with Bobby Deol, Nidhhi Agerwal, Nargis Fakhri, Nora Fatehi, and Satyaraj in key roles. This will be Pawan Kalyan’s first film to hit the screen after he became Deputy Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh last year.