Game Changer: Telangana government denies permission for 1 AM show, approves ticket hikes for Ram Charan film

Shankar's Game Changer, starring Ram Charan and Kiara Advani in the lead roles, will be released in theatres on January 10.

Shankar’s maiden Telugu film, Game Changer, starring Ram Charan and Kiara Advani in lead roles, will be released in theatres on January 10. The Telangana government, which took a stricter stance after the Pushpa 2 Sandhya Theatre stampede death, has denied permission for the 1 am show. Ticket hikes and extra shows have been approved. (Also Read: Ram Charan, Pawan Kalyan offer ₹20 lakh to families of 2 fans who died while returning from Game Changer event)

Kiara Advani and Ram Charan in a still from Shankar's Game Changer.

Game Changer benefit shows

The Andhra Pradesh government approved benefit shows for Game Changer, with the earliest show starting at 1 am. A member of Ram’s team posted the Telangana government's GO on X (formerly Twitter). The government has relaxed some of its rules in return for screening advertisements raising awareness on cyber crime, narcotics and drugs. However, permission was denied for 1 am shows.

Permission was approved to screen six shows on opening day and five shows for nine days after, till January 19. On opening day, approval was granted for a 4 am show, apart from hiking ticket prices by ₹150, including GST, in multiplexes and ₹100 in single screens. The next nine days will see a hike of ₹100 and ₹50 in multiplexes and single screens. Bookings opened in the state after the GO was passed.

About Game Changer

In addition to Ram and Kiara, Game Changer also stars Anjali, Samuthirakani, SJ Suryah, and Srikanth in key roles. Mounted on a budget of over ₹400 crore, the makers spent ₹75 crore filming the songs Thaman S composed. Karthik Subbaraj wrote the film's story, which will be released in Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam and Hindi. The film went into production in 2021 and wrapped up shooting in 2024.

Ram’s last film was the highly successful RRR, directed by SS Rajamouli. Shankar’s last film, Indian 2, starring Kamal Haasan, Siddharth, and Rakul Preet Singh, failed to make a mark. Expectations are high on Game Changer.