What is tax free movie?

Poster:The Kashmir Files
When a film deals with  inspiring subject and a socially-relevant then state governments may (if necessary) exempt it from tax with the intention of making it accessible to a large number of audience.

With The Kashmir Files emerging as   receiving political support and a crowd-puller , several Indian states, including  Madhya Pradesh, Goa, Karnataka ,Haryana, Gujarat,, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, and Uttarakhand, have declared the movie tax-free.
Poster:The Kashmir Files
The film is directed by Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri which is all  about the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits from the Kashmir  Valley during the early phase of the armed insurgency. The film was released on March 11 and by making the film tax-free means tickets are cheaper, and a large number of audience will be able to watch it.

So,what qualifies a film to be declared tax-free?
There are no fixed criteria for a film to claim or enjoy tax exemption from state governments. The decision to give up its claim on tax revenues is taken by state governments on a  basis of each film and on the particular government’s assessment of the importance of the issues that the film deals with.

How much cheaper is it to watch a film that is tax-free  with respect to other films?
Earlier ,state governments levied entertainment tax before the Goods and Services Tax (GST) (2017), which varied from state to state.And entertainment tax was higher in states like Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh.So, when a film was declared tax-fre then the entertainment tax was waived and ultimately making tickets significantly cheaper.

Initially,In the GST regime, movie tickets  attracted a GST of 28 %.Then, two slabs were introduced — 12 per cent GST on tickets costing less than or Rs 100, and 18 per cent on more expensive tickets. While ,the revenue is shared between the central and state governments. So ,when a state declares a film tax free , only the SGST part is waived, while the CGST continues to be levied. The exemption could be 6 per cent or 9 per cent ,depending on the ticket price.
GST Illustration
Even if the tax-exemption does not make a huge difference to the money ,filmmakers look at a tax free tag as an endorsement by the government which boost the film’s image and publicity.

So far ,which other films have been made tax free ?
Initially, popular and significant films such as Gandhi (1982), used to be declared tax free.
A Scene From Gandhi(1982) Film
 Dangal and Neerja ,in 2016, were made tax free in several states. 
 In recent years, among the other films that have been made tax free in several states are Taare Zameen Par (2007) , Mary Kom (2014), , Mardaani (2014),  Nil Battey Sannata (2015),Toilet: Ek Prem Katha (2017),Chhapaak (2020).