Chennai film event at Phoenix Mall canceled after stampede-like overcrowding
A film event at Phoenix Mall in Velachery, Chennai, had to be called off on Saturday evening after overcrowding led to a stampede-like situation.
The unticketed gathering attracted massive crowds, mostly young people, well before it started, quickly jamming up the mall's narrow access roads and causing traffic to crawl for hours, especially as heavy rain hit.
Organizers lacked traffic police coordination
As videos of the chaos spread online, people slammed the poor planning and choice of venue.
Many locals were stuck for ages on Velachery Main Road and nearby routes. Turns out, organizers hadn't coordinated with traffic police since it was an indoor event.
Police stepped in to cancel the event, brought in extra officers to clear things up, and even stopped the chief guest from arriving.
The whole episode has raised fresh questions about safety at big public events.