Hyderabad: A 35-year-old woman died, and her nine-year-old son was critically injured in a stampede that occurred outside a theatre at RTC ‘X’ Roads during the premiere show of the Allu Arjun-starrer “Pushpa-2: The Rule” in the city on Wednesday night.
The incident took place between 10:30 PM and 11:00 PM at the Sandhya 70 mm theatre when Allu Arjun, along with his film crew, arrived in the theatre to watch the show, police said here on Thursday.
Directed by Sukumar and produced by Mythri Movie Makers in association with Sukumar Writings, the movie was released worldwide on Thursday in standard, IMAX, 4DX, D-Box, and PVR ICE formats.
The deceased was identified as Revathi, who was given cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) by cops and rushed to a private hospital at Vidya Nagar, but she succumbed.
Her son Sritej, who was injured in the stampede, shifted to a corporate hospital at Begumpet in the city, where he was undergoing treatment battling for life.
Videos circulating online show police and bystanders attempting to help collapsed Revathi. CPR was administered before she was rushed to the hospital, but she succumbed to her injuries. Her son is undergoing treatment in the hospital.
“The woman, along with her husband Bhaskar and two children from the Dilsukhnagar area, came to the theatre for the premier show for which they had booked the ticket in advance,” the police said.
The entire RTC ‘X’ road area, housing many other cinema theatres, was packed with thousands of fans of Allu Arjun.
When the hero, along with this film crew, arrived in the theatre to watch the show, a large number of enthusiastic fans surged forward to have a glimpse of the actor, causing a stampede-like situation.
As the situation got out of control, police personnel resorted to lathi charge to disperse the crowds.
Hyderabad police registered a criminal case against the theatre and its management for the stampede outside the theatre and the death of a woman.
“There was negligence in theatre management in ensuring crowd control measures were in place. Action will be taken against all those responsible for the incident, police added.
