After a quiet summer with no major star-driven hits, Telugu cinema was counting on a busy slate of releases in June to revive box office fortunes. However, an unexpected crisis looms as theatre exhibitors in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana have announced an indefinite shutdown starting June 1, 2025, protesting against the current rental-based screening system.
According to reports, the decision emerged from a joint meeting at the Telugu Film Chamber, attended by over 60 exhibitors along with prominent producers like Suresh Babu and Dil Raju. Exhibitors argue that the fixed daily rental fees they pay to screen films—regardless of a movie’s box office success—have become financially unsustainable due to rising operational costs.
They are demanding a switch to a revenue-sharing model, where theatres receive a percentage of ticket sales instead of fixed rentals. Until this change is accepted, theatres plan to remain closed, as confirmed in a bandh notice reportedly being prepared for formal submission, according to Gulte.
This shutdown threatens to derail the release plans of several big films in June, starting with Kamal Haasan’s Telugu version of Thug Life on June 5. Other major releases expected to be affected include Pawan Kalyan’s long-awaited Hari Hara Veera Mallu (June 12), Dhanush’s Kubera (June 20), and Manchu Vishnu’s Kannappa (June 27).
The industry now watches closely as the standoff between exhibitors and producers unfolds, with the potential to significantly impact Telugu cinema’s summer box office revival.