Karnataka Budget 2025: Rs 200 Cap on Cinema Tickets, OTT Platform & Mysuru Film City Plans Announced

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, while presenting his 16th Budget for 2025-26, announced a significant change for moviegoers. He revealed that the price of tickets in all theatres, including multiplexes, across the state will now be capped at Rs 200. This move aims to make cinema more affordable for the public.

In addition to this, the Chief Minister unveiled plans to promote Kannada cinema. He announced the creation of an OTT platform dedicated to Kannada movies, addressing concerns from local filmmakers. Recently, prominent Kannada actors like Rakshit Shetty and Rishabh Shetty voiced their frustration over the lack of major OTT platforms for their regional content. In response, Shetty’s production company, Paramvah Studio, launched its own streaming platform for the Kannada web series Ekam in July 2024.

Siddaramaiah also allocated Rs 3 crore to establish a repository for Kannada films, both digital and non-digital. This repository aims to preserve films reflecting the state’s social, cultural, and historical values. Furthermore, he granted cinema the status of an industry, providing it with the same benefits as other industries under the state’s Industrial Policy.

To further boost the film sector, the Chief Minister announced plans for a multiplex movie theater complex on a 2.5-acre plot in Nandini Layout, through a Public-Private Partnership (PPP). In a major move, he confirmed the establishment of a Film City in Mysuru with a Rs 500 crore investment under the PPP model, with 150 acres of land already transferred to the Department of Information and Public Relations for the project.