APR – 15: PUBLIC INTEREST
Bad movie experience? You can move consumer Court
There are several factors that may spoil your movie experience. It may be uncomfortable seats or the air-conditioning system set at a very low temperature that makes you freeze. Late-comers may be allowed by the multiplex staff to walk in when the movie is on, blocking the screen. Or the person sitting in the seat behind may insist on speaking the dialogues before the actor does or constantly kick your seat. Whatever the case, you can assert your consumer rights!
Consumers can complain about a bad movie experience because they are paying for services. If the theatre/multiplex administration does not take action on their complaints, they can seek legal redressal by filing a case in the consumer court.
Interestingly, there are cases of people knocking at the doors of consumer courts over their bad experiences at movie halls and deficiency in service on the part of the multiplex staff. For instance, Karthik Anand went to a multiplex for a 3D movie and ended up watching a blurred movie and getting a terrible headache because of the poor quality of glasses. He demanded a refund but the multiplex staff refused prompting him to approach the consumer court.
In Yashika Agrawal’s case, due to an acoustic disturbance, sound from an adjacent hall echoed in the hall where she was seeing a movie. She asked the multiplex staff to start the movie again as the noise from the other hall was annoying and spoiling her movie experience. But the staff refused and she dragged them to the consumer court.
In situations where a consumer is not able to provide substantial evidence of deficiency in service but a group of people is availing service at the same time, he/she can use affidavits of other consumers or service takers as evidence.
