Hyderabad: PVR Cinemas has been hauled up yet again by a consumer court for screening advertisements before a movie, resulting in its delayed start.
The Hyderabad District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission has ordered PVR Cinemas to pay Rs 75,000 total, The Economic Times reported.
While Rs 25,000 will go to the complainant as compensation and litigation costs, Rs 50,000 will be deposited to the district consumer welfare fund.
In February 2025, a consumer court in Bengaluru had fined PVR and Inox for similar reasons.
In the present case, the complainant – an advocate by profession – had booked two tickets for the 10.35 pm show. He arrived well before the scheduled start time. But advertisements and trailers kept running instead and the movie started 17 minutes after its scheduled time.
In his submissions, the advocate said that the delay pushed his entire night schedule backwards. He finally reached home around 3 am even though the original plan was to get back by 2 am.
That extra hour disrupted his remaining night plans, he claimed.
It was not a minor inconvenience, he argued. Travelling later meant less safety at night, he pointed out. PVR had misused time for commercial advertisements, he said, adding that it violated the Information and Broadcasting Ministry’s specific screening rules.
He approached the consumer commission seeking proper compensation. He wanted payment for harassment, inconvenience and legal costs.
In its defence, PVR did not deny the film’s late start. It defended its business rights though by citing Article 19(1)(g) of the Constitution, which protects businesses’ right to trade freely.
It also referred to an earlier Supreme Court ruling that said cinemas are private property and owners can decide their own operational terms. This applies as long as public interest remains protected.
The pre-film content served a genuine public interest, PVR claimed. Topics included literacy, agriculture, women’s welfare and cleanliness drives. No service deficiency occurred at all, it said.
These arguments were dismissed by the commission though. It cited a ministry memorandum on this matter that states how . public service films must last only two minutes. It also says that they should run within 10 minutes before films start.
The commission also noted PVR’s weak response. It didn’t seriously dispute the delay’s factual details. No solid evidence was presented against the advocate’s claims, as reported by Mint.
Cinemas cannot unfairly extract extra commercial value, the commission held, calling this an unfair trade practice. Captive audiences shouldn’t be subjected to such prolonged advertising screenings, it said.
PVR must permanently stop this practice, the commission said.
In the Bengaluru case, complainant Abhishek M R lost 25 minutes before watching Sam Bahadur in 2023. Lengthy ads disrupted his plan to return to work, Telangana Today reported.
The court had then called this an unfair business practice and directed PVR and Inox to pay Rs 20,000 compensation. That covered the inconvenience and mental distress caused.
PVR and Inox were also asked to pay an additional Rs 8,000 to cover the complainant’s legal costs. The court also fined both chains Rs 1 lakh. This amount went to the consumer welfare fund.
