Strange as it may sound, the extraordinary trailer of Singham Again, released today (October 7), has saddened the hearts of exhibitors as much as it has brought them joy. Had Singham Again been a solo release in the Diwali week, the unhappiness being experienced by the cinema wallahs would never have crept in. Frankly, a trailer like that of Singham Again comes very rarely. It has action, flying cars, fisticuffs, gun battles, comedy, love, music, dance, drama, melodrama and, above all, a huge cast comprising Ajay Devgan, Akshay Kumar, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Deepika Padukone, Tiger Shroff, Jackie Shroff, Arjun Kapoor and Ravi Kishan. What else can one want?
But the reason for the absence of cent per cent joy (which such a trailer should bring) and, in its place, joy mixed with tension among exhibitors is that they would have to divide the screen time in the Diwali week and a couple of weeks thereafter between Singham Again and the other major Diwali release, Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3. Ideally, with a hugely likeable trailer like Singham Again, it would be every exhibitor’s ardent desire to apportion the maximum number of shows to the film. But Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 is not a small film. Besides, it is the third part of a very successful franchise, just like Singham Again is. And so, exhibitors can’t ignore BB 3. The trailer of BB 3 is not yet out but there is every reason to believe that it will also be loved by the public. God forbid, if the trailer of BB 3 is not up to the mark, it will spell bad news for the trade but, secretly, every exhibitor will heave a sigh of relief because his job will be that much easier. Of course, that’s not what they would want, because a hit trailer would only guarantee them footfalls. But that is when the film will hit the screens. The scene leading up to the release date is what one is talking about. For the exhibitors, the days leading up to the Diwali releases will be fraught with tension if the trailer of BB 3 is also going to be terrific. Frankly, there is almost no chance of the trailer of the horror comedy being below the mark. In all probability, its trailer (due to be released shortly) will also bring in a wave of fresh excitement.
The point of tension for every exhibitor is to divide the limited number of shows between two big films in one week, that too, when the two films are eagerly awaited. Both the Diwali releases are, of course, being awaited with a great amount of anticipation by people. If now, like the trailer of Singham Again, the trailer Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 is also kickass, can you imagine how exhibitors would be tearing their hair apart? Distributors of each of the two films will be trying to prevail upon the exhibitors to allot them more and better shows than being allotted to the other film. Therefore, it would not be incorrect to say that better the trailer of BB 3, the higher the degree of sadness among the exhibitors!
Multiplexes at least have multiple screens because of which they can divide the shows between two films, but the condition of owners/controllers of single-screen cinemas will be pathetic because a film like Singham Again should ideally be released in all the shows in a single-screen cinema in the Diwali week, and the same logic would apply to BB 3 if its trailer is as — or even almost as — exciting as that of Singham Again. Even if the trailer of Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 is not as exciting, the distributors of that film would want an equal or more number of shows as would be allotted to Singham Again. After all, BB 3 has franchise value, besides a formidable cast to boast of. Of course, looking to the almost unprecedented response to the already-released trailer of Singham Again, its distributors are keen on getting all the four/five shows in single-screen cinemas. Given this scenario, exhibitors will be in a very unenviable position till Diwali.
As one exhibitor put it succinctly, “It is in our destiny to never have it easy. We wait for films like Singham Again and Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 because they are star-studded, have franchise and, therefore, recall value, and have a lot of hopes pinned on them, but when such two films are slated to release in the same week, our joy gives way to tension and more tension. We are ‘blackmailed” by distributors of both the films and we lose our sleep trying to please all of them. The worst part is that neither the distributor of this film nor the distributor of that film will ever be satisfied. Each of them will feel, we have favoured the other.”