The other day I watched a 3D movie in a theater in
Bengaluru. The person at the box office
demanded Rs.180/- for the ticket.
However, the price printed on the ticket was only Rs.150/- When I asked about the discrepancy, he said
that the additional Rs.30/- is for the 3D glass and instructed me to collect
the 3D glasses inside the cinema hall. I
was glad that this theater is collecting a very nominal deposit for the 3D
glass, compared Rs.100/- being collected in other theatres.
My happiness was short lived! After the movie is over, while exiting I returned the 3D
glass. To my utter surprise, they didn’t
return the deposit. It seems that the deposit
is non-refundable! This sounded unconvincing
for me. Why should they collect the
deposit if it is not refundable? If
deposit is not refundable why don’t they mention it in the ticket itself? And charge applicable GST? Is this Fair?
Going by the numbering of the seats, the theatre could
easily accommodate more than 700 people.
If they collected Rs.30/- per 3D glass, then they would have collected
upto a whopping Rs21,000/- Per show. If 4 shows per day means upto Rs.84,000/- is taken away from the audience in the name of non-refundable deposit. And in a week upto Rs.5,88,000/- money is
looted from audience. And in one week,
the government would be losing revenue upto:
Rs.1,05,840 @ 18%
Rs.1,64,640 @ 28%
The above case is for one cinema hall for one week. If this happens in all theatres across India,
can you imagine the revenue that government is losing? In my humble opinion:
- The cinema hall screening a 3D movie, should not be charging any fee for the 3D glasses, as glasses are returned at the end of the show.
- Even if they collect refundable deposit, it should be a nominal amount.
- In case, the deposit is non-refundable, it should be reflected on the ticket it self and applicable TAX should be collected.
BTW, do you know how much a 3D glass would cost in open market? The 3D glasses when purchased in bulk my cost
as low as Rs.20/- per piece. But the cinema
theaters are collecting Rs.30/- for each and every show. Is this fair?
Isn’t this day light robbery?
And another instance where the cinema theatres evade tax is
the sale of snacks and beverages inside movie hall during the interval time. The snacks/beverages are exorbitantly priced, upto two times the price of the MRP.
Once again, the money is looted from the audience and the government loses
its due revenue. In my opinion:
- First of all, let them not sell any snacks/beverages inside the movie theater.
- If they sell snacks/beverages, let them give proper receipt reflecting GST for each sale. Since theater owners already have the GST registration, let them give receipt to the every item sold in inside the theatre. I am sure they can afford to buy a POS machines and issue receipts for the sales.
घोडा हैं, मैदान हैं, यह बंदा परेशान हैं !