Ticket price hikes and paid premiere permissions continue to make headlines in Telangana, largely due to conflicting statements from the state government and its ministers.
While the Revanth Reddy-led government has not officially rejected requests from the Telugu film industry, inconsistent announcements have led to widespread confusion.
Following the Pushpa 2 stampede incident, Chief Minister Revanth Reddy stated in the Assembly that premiere shows would no longer be allowed in the state.
Soon after, Cinematography Minister Komatireddy Venkat Reddy announced that ticket price hikes would not be permitted.
However, contrary to these statements, several big-budget films later received approvals for ticket rate hikes, and paid premiere shows were allowed for films such as "Hari Hara Veera Mallu", "OG", and "Akhanda 2".
More recently, Revanth Reddy reiterated his promise to Jubilee Hills residents that an additional 20 percent revenue from ticket price hikes would be allocated to the Movie Artistes Association (MAA) for cine workers’ welfare.
Yet, after the release of "Akhanda 2", Komatireddy Venkat Reddy once again asserted that the government would not allow paid premieres or issue new G.O.s for ticket price hikes.
Despite the minister’s latest statement, producer TG Vishwa Prasad expressed confidence on Thursday, announcing plans to hold premiere shows for Prabhas’s "The Raja Saab" on a record number of screens across Telangana and Andhra Pradesh on January 8, 2026, a day ahead of the film’s release.
His announcement suggests that the producer is optimistic about securing government permissions despite the official stance.