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July 24, 2000 |
INDIA TODAY | DAILY NEWS | ASTROLOGY | HOME |
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 Off Line Would this have happened with a B-grade film? Last week, when Priya Cinema in Calcutta stopped screening Refugee after a bumper week, people were surprised. Turned out the proprietor of the cinema, Arijit Dutta had got into a scrap with the distributor, Pritam Jalan over -- amazingly -- the online booking of tickets. While Jalan insisted that online booking was cutting into his profits, Dutta refused to back down on "a useful public service". The result: Refugee was pulled out and and several other theatre owners said they had stopped Net booking. But should they? According to Jalan it's illegal to levy a surcharge on Net-booked tickets. "According to the West Bengal Cinema Regulation Act, 1956, no one can charge more than the price printed on the ticket," he says. "But Priya, in a tie-up with a dotcom company, was charging an extra Rs 5 for booking and another Rs 10 for home delivery." Cinebuffs, however, don't seem to mind. And as far as distributors' profits go, money lost on online tickets was very marginal as only about 5 per cent seats get reserved. The solution, says another theatre owner, is to get the government to amend its act. Or, easier still, start a film club. Either way, the crowds will come. -Labonita Ghosh |
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