There is no describing the level of enthusiasm shown by fans of south Indian actors, especially when a film of their screen idol is hitting the screens.
But then, you have not heard of a Vijay fan. They are quite literally, for want of a better description, ‘Vera Level’, when it comes to pushing the extent of star worship. While for some, the fandom may appear excruciatingly over-the-top but if you’re a smart theatre owner, you know there is an opportunity to capitalise here.
Enter Vettri Cinemas in Chromepet. On Friday, Rakesh Gowthaman, the proprietor, announced on his Twitter that his theatre would organised a special “trailer screening” of Bigil — Vijay’s upcoming movie directed by Atlee — at 9.30am. If you thought, he’d wasted an opportunity... think again! Because, barely a couple of hours into the announcement, Vettri cinemas sold out the “trailer screening” show.
Noticing that there is more than what meets the eye to this feverish excitement among Vijay fans, Rakesh proceeds to add two more shows — at 8.45am and 8am — and goes on to sell them out as well.
On his Twitter account, Rakesh has been inundated with posts by Vijay fans who rushed to the theatre to purchase tickets priced at ₹1. Vettri cinemas had also made it possible to book tickets for the “trailer screening” online. It is to be noted that booking via an online vendor includes paying a convenience fee of ₹30-35. Still, there were posts from Vijay fans on Rakesh’s twitter page suggesting that many had purchased tickets online.
Talk about Verithanam . A Vijay fan is a living embodiment of it!
