Indian fans enraged by film delay
They went on rampage and wrecked cinemas in
several M'sian cities
KUALA LUMPUR, June 16 (Reuters) - Angry Malaysian film fans went on
the rampage at more than 10 cinemas this week, smashing displays,
setting posters ablaze and beating up one manager in protests
against glitches that marred an Indian movie premiere.
The film, "Sivaji -- the Boss", starring Tamil movie idol
Rajnikanth, was released simultaneously in India and Malaysia on
Thursday, but was delayed by six hours at some local theatres, and
called off in others, the Star newspaper said on Saturday.
Tamil speakers make up the majority of Malaysia's ethnic Indians,
who form about 8 percent of a population of 26 million.
At a theatre on the northern island of Penang, police had to be
called in to control unruly fans who banged on ticket counters
demanding refunds, though the film was eventually screened three
hours late, the paper said.
In Klang, near the Malaysian capital, fans who were kept waiting
for more than five hours wrecked a cinema lobbby, ripping up ticket
counters and setting fire to part of the theatre, but the flames
were quickly doused by theatre employees.
Elsewhere, fist fights broke out, people threw glass bottles, and
one cinema manager beaten up by fans had to have stitches for his
head injuries, the paper said, adding that police arrested several
people but released them later.
"I don't understand why they advertised opening times for the movie
if they cannot start on time," D. Karthik, a man who waited five
hours to see the film, was quoted as saying.
Tickets to all 800 seats in Kuala Lumpur's landmark Coliseum cinema
sold out within an hour, enraging people who had queued for up to
four hours.
The film's distributors said heavy rains disrupted delivery of some
prints to theatres while others were held up by delays in receiving
passwords for Internet downloads -- a strategy meant to frustrate
Malaysia's notorious movie pirates, the Star said.
The movie was made for more than $15 million, a huge budget by
Indian standards, and is that country's most expensive film.
Rajnikanth, 57, a flamboyant regional star who is the film's hero,
has almost a cult following in India's southern states, where
tickets have been sold out for weeks.
(source: AsiaOne)
