Pandemonium erupted at the Coliseum cinema in Kuala Lumpur last night when diehard fans of Tamil superstar Rajnikanth were denied tickets for the opening shows of his latest movie.

Hundreds had gathered outside the cinema, some since 8am, to get tickets for the 10pm and midnight screening of the movie, titled Sivaji - The Boss .

However, when announced that the tickets were sold out, the angry fans accused the cinema management of fraud.

As tempers began to flare, the management called the police.

Some 30 policemen, several armed with machine guns, from the Dang Wangi district police headquarters were deployed to the scene. Also spotted were members of the Light Strike Force (LSF) unit.

Traffic in the area was reduced to a crawl and the commotion attracted a large number of curious onlookers who had gathered across the street.

Despite the heavy police presence, the crowd refused to budge and demanded an answer for the unavailability of tickets.

According to them, the ticket counter had opened for only about 15 minutes before they were told that it was 'full house' for both shows.

Where are the tickets?

"It was advertised in the newspapers that there would be no advance ticket bookings for this movie in Coliseum.

"The cinema can accommodate 800 people, so how did they manage to sell hundreds of tickets in such a short time?" asked one angry fan, 29-year-old bank officer Kamarul Zamari.

He said when the counter opened at 5.30pm, only 10 or so people had managed to purchase the tickets before it closed.

"So what happened to the other tickets?" interjected another upset fan. "Each person is only allowed to purchase five tickets, so if 10 people bought five tickets, that would mean 50 tickets were sold. Where are the rest?"

Kamarul said every time a Rajni movie is screened at Coliseum, the tickets would be sold out at the counter and they would be sold in 'black' instead.

The 'black' tickets for Sivaji - The Boss were reportedly being sold for as high as RM45 per piece.

"This happens every time. We must put a full stop to this," stressed Kamarul, who added that he was mulling filing a police report as well as bringing the matter to the attention of consumer associations.

He said last year when there was a proposal for the government to acquire the Coliseum cinema, its owner had appealed for public support.

"We supported him and the cinema back then, but look at what Coliseum has done to us now," he added.

'Sad and disappointed'

Another fan disappointed and saddened by the incident was Evelyn Vincent, 55, who had been watching movies in Coliseum for decades.

"I called Coliseum and they told me that I cannot book the tickets. So I sent my son here at 8am to get the tickets. He later told me that the counter would only open in the evening.

"I called the cinema at 5pm and was told that the counter would open at 5.30pm. I rushed here after work but they said the tickets had finished. I am very disappointed," said Vincent, who works as a tea lady.

Another fan Paul Sambasivam, 20, who had been waiting in vain since morning to get a ticket, said he was told by a cinema employee that VIPs had bought a large chunk of the tickets.

Coliseum manager Sopie Abu, when met, denied that there was any wrongdoing.

"The tickets were sold out. This is the same in other cinemas as well," he said, adding that the angry crowd had damaged one of the gates in the building and cracked the glass at the ticket counter.

As the audience for the 10pm show began to file in, they were grilled by a policeman, Kamarul and his friends as to how they obtained their tickets.

Some claimed they had booked the tickets earlier, while others said they had bought the tickets in the afternoon. A few also owned up to buying 'black' tickets.

Enraged cop

Those with tickets were jeered by the hundreds who were outside the locked gates of the cinema.

At one point, a man clad in a police jacket was spotted entering the cinema and when he was mocked for buying a 'black' ticket, the enraged policeman whipped out a pair of handcuffs and charged towards Kamarul.

However, he was pacified by another police officer at the scene.

The crowd also detained a man suspected of selling 'black' tickets and handed him over to the police.

Meanwhile, Chief Inspector S Nathan, who was heading the police team, advised the public not to buy 'black' tickets as this would only encourage the menace.

Sivaji - The Boss is expected to set a record for its collections.

The movie, which has been released simultaneously in several countries, is distributed in Malaysia by Pyramid Saimara - a company co-owned by S Vel Paari, the son of MIC president and Works Minister S Samy Vellu.