Movies, Masti, Hyderabad

They talk about IT, they talk about infrastructure and they talk about good governance as the USPs of Hyderabad. But what they ignore is the "bigger picture" and literally so in this case.

On a hot Friday afternoon, when half the world is busy finding ways to make an extra buck, a typical Hyderabadi stands in the queue to buy dreams @ Rs 30. He never counts the "stars" in the reviews, nor does bother about cinematic excellence, his motto is simple, "If it’s a movie, there must be something in it."

So, what makes Hyderabad, a moviegoer’s paradise here’s a list…

There’s room for every genre: From the historical to the hysterical, from the corny to the porny, from the thrillers to the campus chillers, the city offers the widest range of choice for every fan. For every Iqbal, in Hyderabad there will be one Fantastic Four dubbed in Telugu. Interestingly, every other week one of the theatres in Hyderabad shows a different version of Kamasurtra. For Example: Japanese Kamasurta, Korean Kamasutra, Spanish Kamasutra etc. At this rate, someday there will sure be one sleaze flick titled German Kamasutra with the tagline, "And you thought Germans are only good at making cars."

Interactive Crowd: Hyderabadis have a great sense of humour and they make full use of that while watching movies. During one of the shows of Mangal Pandey at a theatre in Musheerabad, when Toby Stephens asked the widow Jwala her name in his anglicized accent, pat came the reply from a member of the crowd, "Abe Yeh Amisha Patel Ku Nahin Janta." But please, don’t ever watch a horror movie in Hyderabad. There will be more than one noise haunting you in the theatre!

Clone Kings: If you are going to watch a Salman Khan movie in Hyderabad, then we bet you will meet more than one Sallu Bhai in the theatre. There will be hundreds of clones who will be eager to see their favourite star are play. Buy ticket to see one Salman and get hundred free. Quite an irresistible offer, isn’t it?

Paisa Vasool: Every Delhite or Mumbaikar who comes to Hyderabad finds the city a dream for movie-goers. For people who are used to spend Rs 500 on a movie, a trip to Sangeet sounds like a Broadway musical. And for some of the die-hards, that is also one of the reasons why they think twice before relocating to another city.

First day first show? Possible: An average big budget movie gets released simultaneously in at least 10 theatres in Hyderabad. So those who miss the bus for booking tickets at the posh theatres, there is always hope. And if that also doesn’t work, there are blackers who can bail you out on a rainy day. Even the hiked prices quoted by the blackers, is less than a ticket at the PVR or Inox.

Baar Baar Dekho: There are scores of theatres in Hyderabad who make a living out of classics. For those who are still besotted with a DDLJ or Sholay, Hyderabad is the place to be. Old is gold and it’s an open secret that Hyderabadis love gold more than anybody else.
Language No Bar: Every top grosser Hollywood movie, releases in three avatars here in Hyderabad - one in English and the other two in Telugu and Hindi. And mind you if you know even little bit of Telugu, these dubbed movies can be laugh riots. Interestingly, Sholay’s Telugu-dubbed version will soon hit the small screen.