“Rentals HIGHER than New York City, London!” – Indian exhibitors reveal SHOCKING reality behind sky-high ticket prices, popcorn rates: “None of the cinemas is killing it. We are not buying islands, are we?” : Bollywood News

Amit Sharma - Managing Director, Miraj Cinemas, Devang Sampat - Managing Director (India), Cinepolis and Vishek Chauhan - CEO, Roopbani Cinema came together and raised some valid points in the third episode of The Filmy Hustle, hosted by distributor-exhibitor Akshaye Rathi. As expected, the talk veered towards the F&B (food and beverages), particularly the high price of popcorn.

“Rentals HIGHER than New York City, London!” – Indian exhibitors reveal SHOCKING reality behind sky-high ticket prices, popcorn rates: “None of the cinemas is killing it. We are not buying islands, are we?”

Devang Sampat said, “It (High F&B price point) pinches the customer more than the ticket price. It is a chosen strategy. We have not increased the ticket price; we want people to come in. To cover up the costs, we need to do that through F&B. One might argue, ‘Popcorn toh bahar Rs. 50 ka milta hai aur aapke yahaan Rs. 500 ka milta hai’. It is expensive not because we are making money. All of us exhibitors are generating only some margin, and that margin is invested back into the business for expansion. If we don’t expand at this stage, it won’t work for us well. Producers are appreciating this aspect. Even the public appreciates the fact that they can now watch films in places (where there was a dearth of options).”

Vishek Chauhan added, “When the audience says that the ticket price is too high, I don’t think so. None of the cinemas is killing it. We are not buying islands, are we? We are trying to balance the input costs and the audience expectations.”

He added, “Someone told me that airline prices have either been constant or gone down, leading to a massive increase in the air traffic. Mobile data cost is also among the cheapest in the world. I agree with both these aspects. But the input cost for theatres is what increases the price. The rent we are paying is more than what it is in New York City and London. The cost of operating a cinema in the interiors of the USA will be much less than what we are operating here. If we don’t make money, how do we ensure the upkeep of our cinemas?”

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