Feb 19, 2025 10:09 AM IST
A Bengaluru consumer court has fined PVR and Inox for wasting a viewer’s time with long ads and trailers beyond the film’s stipulated time.
A district consumer court in Bengaluru has rapped theatre chain PVR-Inox for ‘wasting’ viewers’ time with long ads before a film begins. A viewer had filed a complaint against PVR claiming they continued to show ads and trailers for 30 minutes after the scheduled start of a film’s screening time.
PVR Inox fined by consumer court
Bar and Bench reported that the complainant, Abhishek MR, went to watch Vicky Kaushal-starrer Sam Bahadur on December 26, 2023 for a 4:05 pm show. However, the theatre played trailers and ads till 4:28 pm and the film did not begin till 4:30 pm. The complainant said that this delay disrupted his schedule for the rest of the day.
A coram of President M Shobha, along with members K Anita Shivakumar and Suma Anil Kumar, passed the order against PVR-Inox in the case, stating, “In the new era, time is considered money, each one’s time is very precious, no one has right to gain benefit out of others time and money. 25-30 (minutes) is not less to sit idle in the theatre and watch whatever the theatre telecasts. It is very hard for busy people with tight schedule watching unnecessary advertisements. However, they make their own arrangements to get some relaxation with family. (This does) not mean that people have no other work to do.”
The consumer forum also issued a set of directions to PVR and Inox, stating that ‘actual movie time should be mentioned on cinema tickets’ and that ‘PVR and Inox must stop engaging in unfair trade practices and not to exhibit advertisements beyond the scheduled show times mentioned in the ticket’.
The court ordered PVR Cinemas and Inox to pay ₹20,000 to the complainant for causing him mental agony and inconvenience, and ₹8,000 towards the expenses he bore to file the complaint. The cinema chain has also been ordered to ₹1 lakh as punitive damages for engaging in unfair trade practices. The amount is to paid within 30 days to consumer welfare fund.
About PVR Inox
PVR Inox is the largest cinema chain in India with over 1700 screens at 355 properties across India. They have presence in 111 cities in India and Sri Lanka. PVR was founded in 1997 with the merger of Priya Cinemas and Village Roadshow Pictures. The current company was formed in 2023 after PVR Cinemas and Inox Leisure merged.
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