A tragic incident occurred on Sunday, December 8, at the premiere of Pushpa 2: The Rule at Sandhya Theatre in Chikkadpally, leaving a 35-year-old woman, Revathi, dead and her young son severely injured. The stampede occurred due to an overflow crowd entering the theatre, resulting in asphyxiation and serious injuries.
Authorities have taken into custody three people in connection with the incident: M. Sandeep (37), the theatre owner; M. Nagaraju (51), the theatre manager; and Gandhakam Vijay Chander (53), the security manager.
It happened around 9:30 PM as huge crowds were thronging to have a glimpse of the hero of the movie, Allu Arjun. There was no official announcement from the theatre or the actor’s team that he would be attending the function. However, when Allu Arjun appeared there unexpectedly with his personal security team, the crowd followed him and tried to enter the theatre with him. This resulted in a rush in the lower balcony area, where the situation became unmanageable. Revathi and her son were trapped in the stampede. Police on patrol were able to rescue them from the stampede and provided them with CPR before rushing them to nearby hospitals. In a desperate attempt, Revathi was pronounced dead at Durgabai Deshmukh Hospital, while her son remains in critical condition at a Super Speciality Hospital.
According to a complaint filed by the family members of Revathi, police have booked a case against them under Sections 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) and 118(1) (causing hurt or grievous hurt intending to cause) read with 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Probe has been launched to identify people responsible for the death case.
In the wake of the tragedy, Allu Arjun announced a donation of ₹25 lakh to Revathi’s family as a gesture of support. While expressing his condolences, the actor reiterated his commitment to ensuring such incidents are avoided in the future.
The sad incident has brought out issues related to crowd control and security in such high-profile events, particularly in theaters and public areas. Authorities have stressed that stringent laws should be formulated so that something like this will not occur again.
