PVR CEO and MAI President Kamal Gianchandani says there has not been a drop in F&B sales post-pandemic, indicating that people are comfortable with the pricing
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The Multiplex Association of India (MAI) has announced the second edition of Cinema Lovers Day. Under this program, film tickets across multiplexes in the country will be available for Rs 99 barring luxury seating halls. The offer is valid only on May 31. This is the second edition of Cinema Lovers Day this year.
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"The previous edition, which was in February, was a massive success. 'Article 370' was released on that Friday and it caught a massive impetus because of the first edition of Cinema Lovers Day and we expect the program to repeat its success in the second edition. We are expecting it to be bigger than the first edition," says MAI president and PVR CEO Kamal Gianchandani talking to mid-day.com.
"Tickets are priced at Rs 99, the same level as February. The kind of anecdotal feedback that we received from cinemas tells us that a large number of youth and families who perhaps find going to the theatres inaccessible because of the crisis, come out and support these initiatives."
Making cinema accessible:
The primary cause of concern post the pandemic for theatre owners was to get people back to the theatres. The OTT platforms saw a massive boom during the pandemic making entertainment accessible in the comfort of their homes. When asked if it is still a task to get people to the cinema halls, Gianchandani puts the onus on content. "It depends on the quality of the film and the curiosity around the film that's releasing. If the film is good, it's never been difficult to get people to theatres. But if the film is substandard, then it's always been a problem. Not post-COVID, pre-COVID, but across the history of film business," he said stressing that initiatives like Cinema Lovers Day is about making the "experience accessible to large families".
"If people hear good things about a film, they want to rush and be part of that experience. As you know, we have a window of eight weeks (between theatrical and OTT release). So legally, if you want to watch a film in the first eight weeks, you have to watch it in theaters."
Is multiplex pricing a deal breaker?
There have also been conversations about the theatre experience being an expensive one, which discourages a lot of people from heading to the theatres. A theatre experience also involves consuming food and the snacks available have largely been targeted for being overpriced.
Sharing his thoughts on the pricing structure, Gianchandani says, "We practice what is known as variable pricing. For different films, different theaters, different days, different show timings, we offer different prices. These prices can suit all segments of our customers".
He added, "The average ticket price at our chain of PVR INOX is only Rs 260, which is a very reasonable number given the inflation that we have in our economy. People are willing to pay for quality people, even in small towns."
"There is no resistance on F&B (food and beverage) pricing. People enjoy our F&B offerings. We have seen no drop in F&B sales post-COVID as compared to pre-COVID, which indicates that people are comfortable with the price at which we are offering them both F&B and tickets."
Increasing the 8-week window:
While there is an agreement for an 8-week window between theatrical and OTT releases, Gianchandani says they would love to increase the time period. "We would love to increase the window. If you look at the international markets, the window between theatrical release and streaming release is as high as four to five months. We are in discussions with our production partners and we are also encouraging them to consider."
"But that said, as far as numbers go, we are comfortable with where we are. The current admissions that we are reporting across the country, indicate that when a film is good, people want to watch it in the first week or in the second weekend at the latest. There's a lot of interest in movies and that works to the advantage of our business."
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