Avatar rating 20 on 10 man-awesome! What an experience in 3d! — Vivek Oberoi’s tweet.

Watching Avatar? Watch it in 3-D, say Bollywood studios and Calcutta campuses.

The costliest film ever made may not revolutionise the way the world makes its movies, but it does look set to change the way Calcutta views its 3-D. For the 12 months that IMAX, the Mani Square plex that screens 3-D films on a giant screen, has been around, the city has shown little inclination to pay more and put on those cumbersome glasses.

“Calcutta will take some time to get 3-D friendly,” said Jim Patterson of AerenR IMAX that is not screening Avatar owing to “exorbitant print cost” and the low demand for 3-D till now.

But 3-D is now the top draw with James Cameron’s magnum opus luring large crowds to two INOX Forum and Fame South City screens in their new 3-D avatar. “The demand for the 3-D version is more than twice of that for the 2-D format,” said Virendra Marya of INOX.

The Fame multiplex at South City had a glitch-ridden start, failing to screen Avatar in 3-D for the Tollywood premiere crowd on Wednesday evening owing to a “technical hitch”, but recovered to post four houseful shows on Friday. “The majority just want to watch the 3-D version. Only if they aren’t getting tickets for 3-D are they going for 2-D,” said chief operating officer Rishi Negi.

The weekend ticket rates are peaking at Rs 350, plus a refundable security deposit of Rs 200 for the glasses, but that isn’t stopping large gangs of college students trooping in for the $300 million film in 3-D.