Kerala Theatre Fined Rs 50,000 For Denying Viewers To Watch Film From Start

A district consumer forum here has directed a theatre owner to pay a fine of Rs 50,000 for denying viewers the chance to watch a movie from the beginning despite booking the seats and reaching the cinema hall on time.

The Malappuram District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission has given the direction to the Plaza theatre at Perinthalmanna on a joint complaint filed by Elamkulam residents Sarath, Anand, Sujeesh, Vijesh and Nikhil.

Denying the audience the opportunity to watch the film in its entirety was deemed by the commission to be a deficiency in service, a release from the Public Relations Department in Malappuram.

The complaint was filed by the people who went to watch the Tamil movie 'Ponniyin Selvan: 2' on April 30, 2023.

According to the complainants, they reached the theatre at 6.45 PM but were entry citing cleaning work being done before the show.

They alleged that they were misled by the theatre management.

When they were allowed to enter the theatre at 7.10 PM, the movie had been playing for 10 minutes already, they said. They alleged that the theatre authorities refused to play the movie from the beginning citing their tight schedule due to the long duration of the movie.

However, the theatre authorities claimed that the complainants reached the complex at 7.05 pm and they were not deliberately denied entry.

"Theatre authorities failed to fix the timings for the show and subsequent cleaning. The viewers have the right to enter the theatre conveniently and watch the movie in its entirety in a clean environment," a bench comprising President K Mohandas and members Preeti Sivaraman and C V Muhammad Ismail said in the order.

"As there were lapses, a compensation of Rs 50,000 should be paid to the five complainants. Rs 10,000 is awarded as costs," the bench further said.

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