"Cinema is the most beautiful fraud in the world."– Jean-Luc Godard

Every one of us loves the 2-hour escape a movie provides from the everyday mundane life. Those gigantic tubs of buttery popcorns, finger chips and Coke – there’s every chance that a movie-going experience could cost you 1000 bucks or even more.

If going to the movies is a luxury that you cannot afford anymore, here’s how you can score deals and watch them on the cheap...

1. Buy tickets from cashback sites

You’re always going to find exciting offers on cashback sites. Paytm, for instance, offers cashback of Rs 20 to Rs 100 on movie tickets. Not just cashback, even discount offered by them is quite huge.

2. Find out about movie screenings

They say that the best things in life are free and so is the entry to these movie screenings! You will find movie screenings mostly in bigger metropolitan cities. You get to watch movies with no tickets and you get to connect with like-minded people too! However, you’ll have to pay just a small amount for annual membership and watch movies every month...

Some of the popular film clubs in Delhi are: Habitat Film Club, Cine Darbaar, Kriti Film Club, Cine Club: Alliance Francaise – for all you Francophiles, IIC Film Club, Japan Foundation Cinema Club – for all Samurai fans!, Shamiana – The Short Film Club, New Delhi Film Society and The 48-Hour Film Project.

3. Sign up for movie theater’s website/app

While most people find ticket-selling websites the best option to save some money, your local theatre's website can also give the bang of your money! If you sign up on their website or app, you can grab on opportunities that come your way. Log on to pvrcinemas.com and register so that you can reap a whole lot of benefits. You can buy tickets, participate in the coolest contests, win movie merch and get the juiciest gossips!

4. Check for credit card perks

To get some amazing offers on movie tickets, these credit cards may help you big time...

• Axis Bank Neo Credit Card – This card will get you a discount of 10% every time you book movie tickets on BookMyShow.
• Kotak PVR Platinum Credit Card – With this card, you get 1 movie ticket absolutely free on every Rs 750 you spend at PVR Cinemas and 2 free tickets when you spend Rs 10,000. You can use these tickets to watch any show across PVR Cinemas in your city.
• HSBC Visa Platinum Card – If you book 2 movie tickets on BookMyShow app using this app, you get 1 ticket free. Not only this, you also get a movie voucher worth Rs 500 when you spend Rs 50,000 in a calendar year.
• Citi Cashback Card – It is a cool credit card for all movie junkies. Using this card, you’ll get 5% cashback every time you book a movie ticket.
• IndusInd Bank Platinum Card – With this card, you get complimentary tickets when you book through BookMyShow in all major cities.

Find more credit card offers here.

5. Avoid IMAX and 3D experiences

Movies in fancy formats come with an obvious extra cost. When you're watching movies in IMAX or 3D, you are paying for that luxury. Opt for standard 2D format if you wanna watch movies on the cheap. You can watch larger-than-life movies like Harry Potter, Avatar, Life of Pi, The Walk, Toy Story, Guardians of the Galaxy, X-Men series, et al in 3D, but watching a comedy is out of question and just a waste of money.

6. Choose your movie timings carefully

There is a reason why movie tickets are pricier on Saturdays – because everyone is ready to go to movies on weekends! And pre-noon time is the cheapest time of the day, you’ll want to change your timings if you want to watch movies on the cheap. Hopping on to a movie theatre after your morning walk might just be the best idea ever and the best reason to get up in the morning! Watching movies on weekdays are, again, cheaper than watching them on weekends. Since there is less demand on weekdays, the prices of movie tickets are slashed to attract movie-goers... On weekdays, the morning or afternoon shows could cost as low as Rs 125!

7. Buy directly from the theatre

Most people have come to terms with buying tickets online from home and paying a few extra bucks for the convenience. But, you can nix those fees by getting tickets straight from the movie counters. Some conveniences such as these cost you a small fee and you can get discount by avoiding such conveniences.

8. Eat before you step in the theatre

We hope that you already know that sneaking food into a theatre is against rules... To save some extra money, you should eat beforehand to avoid buying those fries and hot dogs that they usually sell at exorbitant prices! Should you need something to munch on during the movies, buy food combos along with movie tickets from ticketing websites and make a pact with yourself that you’ll have no more than one small bucket of popcorns & one soft drink!

9. Win sweepstakes

Free movie tickets, anyone? Since movie tickets cost relatively less than any other gift, contest holders will try to woo you with one or two... which, we believe, is not at all a bad idea! So get active and start participating...

Use these tips to save yourself some money the next time you go to movies – you don’t necessarily have to skip on latest blockbusters because of a tight personal budget.

Watch this awesomesauce video and do subscribe to our YouTube channel here: