When there’s already so much negativity against Bollywood, why are the Bollywood people themselves posting negative things about their brethren?

– The whole negativity wave started in the public because a handful of Bollywood people spoke ill of successful Bollywood personalities in the aftermath of Sushant Singh Rajput’s demise. That continues in the minds of members of the general public. And the negative talk about successful people by some disgruntled people in the film industry also continues. But a correction is bound to happen. One self-styled film critic has already been arrested. That’s a correction!

If Liger could not take even a decent initial in spite of aggressive promotion, is pre-release marketing and promotion really necessary?

– Of course, it is! For every LIGER, there is a BHOOL BHULAIYAA 2 or an RRR (dubbed), which opened to great houses, thanks to wonderful promotion, among other things.

Does the continuous flopping of films at the box-office imply that the days of cinemas are numbered? Has OTT replaced cinemas?

– Not really! Films are flopping in theatres because the content is bad, not because OTT is posing formidable competition to cinemas.

What was the logic of releasing Hindi Liger in non-Southern circuits on Thursday in the night shows only? And the logic of releasing the Telugu or Tamil dubbed version of the film in the non-Southern circuits on Thursday from morning itself?

– None which comes to the mind. If anything, the poor attendance in cinemas screening the Telugu or Tamil dubbed version in the day-time shows on Thursday (August 25) only served to underline that the opening was terrible.

Why is there no major film releasing next week?

– Perhaps, because of the Ganesh festival which falls next week. Since Ganesh Chaturthi falls on Wednesday, 31st August, producers must’ve steered clear of the following Friday (2nd September).

What do you make out of the recent line of flops in Bollywood?

– It’s the period of churning. New talent will come in place of the old creators who refuse to pull up their socks.

With films flopping one after the other, how did Inox, a public limited company, report the first quarter of financial year 2022-23 as its best ever quarter in its 20-year history?

– The terrible patch started in Bollywood after May 2022. Before that, the months from January-May were good. The first quarter of 2022-23 implies business results of the months of April, May and June 2022. They became even better because of the success of several Hollywood and South films. Besides, the number of screens under the Inox umbrella has gone up.

If I were to ask you to point out the one biggest mistake in Laal Singh Chaddha, what would it be?

– FORREST GUMP should never have been remade in Hindi because that film was not meant for the large mass base of Indian audiences. Even if it were to be remade, it should have been rewritten completely afresh to suit the sensibilities of the Indian public. And more importantly, it should have been made at half or a third of the budget because it is a class film at the end of the day.

The film trade was banking a great deal on the success of Laal Singh Chaddha and Raksha Bandhan. What do the two failures mean for it now?

– With films flopping one after the other since many weeks, did the film trade have any option but to bank heavily on the success of the two films released last week, more so because they were hitting the screens on a festive day (Raksha Bandhan) and in one of the best weeks of the year (with multiple holidays)? The two failures mean that the trade’s tale of woes continues!

Is it time for revision of star prices now? After all, films are falling like nine pins at the box-office.

– It will never be time for revision of star prices till producers don’t stop chasing stars. While stars are in short supply, the number of films being made with a handful of saleable stars is ever-increasing. That is why the call for revision of star prices will always fall on deaf ears. Had the stars been a conscientious lot, they would have reduced the fees they charge, of their own volition. But which star has that kind of a clean conscience? Which star is thinking of the industry before himself? (Picture above is for representational purpose only.)

I have a wonderful script which I have myself written. But I’m finding it difficult to get a star who will work in my film. What can I do?

– Every writer thinks, he has written a wonderful script. Before the audience also thinks so, the stars have to be convinced of the wonderfulness of the script, otherwise such projects never take off. This is not to dissuade you, but are you sure that your script is indeed very good? Has a person unrelated to your script endorsed it or found it interesting?

Have our filmmakers forgotten to make good films?

– I don’t think so. That is why the spate of flops is not really cause for concern. The situation would’ve been tension-ridden if our filmmakers had lost their creativity. But the fact is that Bollywood films are flopping not because our filmmakers don’t know to make good films but because the urge to make good films has taken a backseat. The motivating force is profitability which is assured for even below-average fares.

Isn’t the situation at the Bollywood box-office alarming?

– It is not as alarming as is being made out to be. The panic button would have been needed to be pressed if good films were flopping, but that isn’t happening. All the films, which are failing at the box-office, deserved to fail. Hence there is hope. It isn’t as if filmmakers have forgotten to make films, or that writers have forgotten to write well. The fact is that almost everybody was taking the easy way out — dishing out substandard fare and hoping that the public would accept it. They must’ve realised that there is no shortcut to success. They will now work harder. So the new crop of films will be far superior. Rejoice!

Is it alright for an Akshay Kumar starrer to have a running time of just 110 minutes? Raksha Bandhan has a running time of 1 hour and 50 minutes only.

– One can’t comment without watching the film. But let me add here that exhibitors are unhappy with its unusually small length. Such running times are alright for offbeat films with less popular actors, they feel, but an A-list actor’s film ought to be of more than two hours! Let me add here that sometimes, the audience also feels cheated when the film is unduly short.

After Ranbir Kapoor’s Shamshera having bombed at the box-office, will Brahmastra take a good opening?

– You bet, BRAHMASTRA will take a fantastic opening. And not just because its ‘Kesariya’ song is a super-hit number.

Why did Vikrant Rona (dubbed) not take a decent opening? After all, the audience seems to have more faith in dubbed versions of South films!

– That’s not true. After PUSHPA: THE RISE PART 1, RRR and K.G.F. CHAPTER 2, there have been so many South films, dubbed in Hindi, which have failed at the box-office. Each film, whether from the South or not, is weighed for what it is worth.

There’s no major new film releasing next week in cinemas whereas two big films — Laal Singh Chaddha and Raksha Bandhan — are slated for release in the following week (on 11th August). Why couldn’t one of the two films release next week?

– The producers of both the big films (LAAL SINGH CHADDHA and RAKSHA BANDHAN) wanted to take advantage of the festive holiday of Raksha Bandhan on 11th August and the national holiday of Independence Day on 15th August, in their first week. So who is anybody to advise them to release their film a week earlier?

What corrective steps would you suggest for Aditya Chopra to improve the quality of his production ventures?

– Aditya Chopra is going wrong in the greenlighting of his films. Most of his recent films should never have been made in the first place.

Which between Laal Singh Chaddha and Raksha Bandhan will take a bigger opening on 11th August?

– Since 11th August is the day of the Raksha Bandhan festival, it will be a holiday. So let us pray that both, LAAL SINGH CHADDHA and RAKSHA BANDHAN, open to bumper houses.

Why does the trade always say that it is better for two big films to not clash on the same day?

– Big films need more number of shows per day. If two big films hit the screens on the same day, shows get divided. In other words, none of the two films gets the optimum number of shows it deserves. Also, there are already running films too which need to be accommodated along with the two big releases.

Does Bollywood need to worry about the rate at which films are flopping?

– Definitely, Bollywood needs to worry. And not just about the rate at which films are flopping but also at how terribly they are bombing. Shows being cancelled at cinemas owing to absence of audience is becoming routine, and that’s not a good sign.

What will be the impact of reverting to the eight-week exclusive theatrical window for new film releases in place of the temporary four-week window?

– The film trade is hoping that because of the lengthier window, the number of footfalls in cinemas will go up markedly, especially in the initial days of a film’s release. There’s a difference between having to wait for a month for the film to arrive on an OTT platform and waiting for two months. On the other hand, streaming platforms will pay producers lesser for the digital rights of films because they will be streamed after double the time compared to what is happening today.

Does what our screen heroes do in their personal lives affect their image and the box-office performance of their films?

– It used to affect only their image to an extent, in the good old days when there was no social media, but nowadays, what they do in their personal lives sometimes affects the box-office performance of their films too, again to some extent.

Who is the highest-paid actress today?

– Deepika Padukone and Alia Bhatt are the highest paid actresses.

How would you describe the first half of 2022 as far as the box-office is concerned?

– Fairly good but definitely not up to the mark. Two South films — K.G.F. CHAPTER 2 and RRR — saved the day. As far as Bollywood films are concerned, THE KASHMIR FILES, BHOOL BHULAIYAA 2 and GANGUBAI KATHIAWADI were the winners. We had some good Hollywood films too.

What’s your prediction for the second half of this year?

– Please go through our Releases column, take a look at the forthcoming releases, and you will get your answer.

Why do producers make non-star cast films and then release them without any worthwhile promotion?

– They, perhaps, believe in miracles. They have money to invest in producing such films but they don’t plan for promotion of such films. They fail to understand that small, non-star cast films need to be promoted more than big films because there is often zero awareness about even the existence of such films.

Why are almost all films failing at the box-office? Is it true that people have stopped coming to the cinemas?

– It’s not true that the public has stopped frequenting cinemas. Had they stopped, how did BHOOL BHULAIYAA 2 do so well at the box-office? But what is true is that people are not coming to cinemas unless a film is worth watching. For lesser films, people don’t mind waiting for a month so that they can watch those films on an OTT platform. The exclusive theatrical window for films, as you know, has been reduced to four weeks, after the lockdown.

Films of big production houses fetch fantastic revenues from sale of digital and satellite rights even if they fail at the ticket windows. Therefore, such producers don’t make losses. Is that true?

– That’s true quite often. But what about the loss of reputation that follows a flop? Besides, OTT platforms and satellite television channels pay them humongous prices because they have been delivering successful and hit films in a row. If they deliver flops in a row, they will not be entitled to the benefit of high prices from the platforms and channels.

Will Thor: Love And Thunder, due next week, open well?

– You bet, it will open very well. Its advance booking, started days earlier, has been good.