The ongoing battle between major cinema chains—PVR, Inox, and Cinepolis—and producers over Virtual Print Fee (VPF) payments has taken a new turn. Last month, the industry was shaken when PVR Inox halted advance bookings for Jolly LLB 3, starring Akshay Kumar and Arshad Warsi, after Star Studio18 refused to pay the VPF. The advance booking was stopped twice, even just hours before the film’s first show. Although the studio eventually paid the fee under protest, negotiations continued.
Now, the same VPF issue has resurfaced with Single Salma, another film produced by Star Studio18. Bollywood Hungama reports that the studio again requested a VPF waiver from PVR Inox and Cinepolis, but the request was denied. Discussions are ongoing, and if no resolution is reached, Single Salma may be limited to non-national theaters only.
Trade sources estimate Single Salma will release on about 200 screens. The film stars Huma Qureshi—who also featured in Jolly LLB 3—along with Shreyas Talpade and Sunny Singh. Earlier, Viacom18 (Star Studio18’s parent company) had signed an agreement with PVR Inox to pay VPF only until 2024. Since Jolly LLB 3 is a 2025 release, Viacom18 sought a waiver. However, PVR Inox countered that the agreement’s sunset clause depended on other producers ceasing VPF payments, which had not happened, so the fee remained applicable.
On September 30, 2025, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) initiated an investigation against PVR Inox for allegedly abusing its dominant market position by continuing to enforce VPF charges on producers. The probe revealed that PVR Inox had “sunset clauses” in agreements with both Star Studio18 (Viacom18) and Yash Raj Films to phase out VPF payments by December 2024. However, PVR maintained to CCI that these clauses were still under negotiation and contingent on the studios stopping VPF payments to other exhibitors, which had not yet occurred. Stay tuned to know more about it only with us.
