Small and content-driven Telugu films are fighting a losing battle at the box office. Distributor Madala Ramakrishna has squarely blamed big-budget releases like Coolie No. 1 and War 2, which together collected over ₹120 crore in just one week, but, in his view, drained the pockets of moviegoers.“Telugu audiences have spent a bomb on these films and are left with no money to watch new releases,” he said, pointing out the wide disparity in ticket prices. “Rajinikanth’s Coolie ticket in Chennai is ₹180, but in Telugu states, it is above ₹400. Similarly, War 2 tickets were ₹200 in the North, while here they were priced at more than ₹400. This is nothing but fleecing Telugu audiences who love watching movies.”With audiences’ spending power exhausted, Ramakrishna argued, small films have suffered. Three releases on August 22—Anupama Parameswaran’s Pardha, Bun Butter Jam, and Meghalu Cheppina Prema Katha—all opened to lukewarm response in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, together grossing barely ₹15 lakh. “These films indeed opened with meager collections, which is unfortunate,” he added.He further highlighted that small films have historically nurtured legendary filmmakers such as Dasari Narayana Rao, K. Viswanath, Bapu, Trivikram Srinivas, and Sekhar Kammula, who later scaled up to bigger ventures. “New talent is being crushed due to high ticket prices. If they don’t get an opportunity to showcase their work to audiences, how will their talent and future be judged? This is a tricky situation for young actors and directors,” he noted.Earlier, theatres offered affordable slabs of ₹30, ₹50, ₹70, and ₹100 for balcony seats, ensuring cinema was accessible to all. “Now, 95% of seats cost above ₹200, leaving just 5% affordable for the poor. Cinema was once a poor man’s entertainer, but today it has become a luxury,” Ramakrishna lamented.According to him, only youth and hardcore masses are still flocking to theatres, while families are staying away. He cited examples of Sankranthiki Vasthunam and Mahaveer Narasimha, which succeeded with lower ticket rates, proving that high prices don’t guarantee bigger box office returns beyond the first three days.“Big films are squeezing money out of the market in Telugu states, and small films are paying the price. They don’t get theatres during festivals and holidays, and when they release later, audiences have no money left to watch them. It’s quite a tough situation for content-based films in Tollywood,” Ramakrishna concluded.
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