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.

When will Akshay Kumar bounce back?

– When he delivers a successful film. That apart, it is after a long time that the trailer of a forthcoming film of his has been liked. I’m talking about the trailer of RAKSHA BANDHAN. If you recall, none of the trailers of his recent films were liked, but the trailer of RAKSHA BANDHAN seems to have worked its magic on the public and the film trade alike.

I’m an exhibitor of Bihar, and I’m in a very sad state of affairs as no film is doing well at the box-office. I’m at my wits’ end, I don’t know what I should do. Can you please advise?

– Take solace in the fact that all exhibitors are sailing in the same boat as you, if I may say so! Jokes apart, the situation is so bad that exhibitors are bleeding. The situation can improve only when a hit film arrives in cinemas.

Have the prices for digital rights of films come down from the level during the lockdown days?

– Yes, they have reduced. OTT platforms aren’t making profits and, therefore, the prices have come down.

How would you describe the first half of 2022 for the box-office?

– It’s been fairly good. Although there have been many flops, some films like K.G.F. CHAPTER 2, RRR, THE KASHMIR FILES, BHOOL BHULAIYAA 2 and GANGUBAI KATHIAWADI have done well, most of them amazingly well. Besides, there’s still a week to go before the first half’s releases can be analysed. Wait for JUGJUGG JEEYO to hit the screens.

We keep saying that the audience today has become very smart and, therefore, mediocre films will not work any longer. I’ve been hearing this since donkey’s years. Can you tell me, when was the audience not smart?

– You are absolutely right. The paying public has always been smart. Anybody who has to spend his hard-earned money on something, is inherently clever enough to weigh the pros and cons before spending it. And that’s true not just for a film ticket priced at Rs. 100 or Rs. 200 but also for even a rupee spent on anything. Only thing, since people have access to more information now, thanks to social media, their smartness has increased. But that happens in any sphere. Besides, today, the audience has a lot of choices in the form of content on OTT platforms, making the competition for films more severe. Otherwise, poor content has never worked, and it never will!

Is it true that Raksha Bandhan will be premiered on an OTT platform?

– Not at all! Zee has acquired all the rights of the film for a phenomenal price and can’t dream of forgoing theatrical release. It will hit the screens on 11th August.

What’s going wrong with Yash Raj Films? Why are its films flopping?

– When films flop, there can’t be a standard reason for all the flops. In the case of JAYESHBHAI JORDAAR, the film should never have been made with a hero who is lying all the time. And when he’s not lying, he’s running and hiding. None of the qualities are those which we like to see our heroes possess. As for SAMRAT PRITHVIRAJ, the intention for making it comes across as encashing on the Hindutva climate in the country and wanting to appeal to that philosophy rather than making an entertainer. The intent is wrong. Besides, historicals are always risky propositions because many among today’s audiences don’t like them unless they are outstanding. SAMRAT PRITHVIRAJ was not outstanding by any stretch of imagination.

I have a budget of Rs. 12-13 crore to make a film. I can make it with ‘B’ list actors. I have utmost faith in the script. Should I go ahead and make the film?

– Think over and over again. Everyone feels, he has a fantastic script. Assuming, you actually have a good commercial script, you need at least Rs. 6-7 crore to promote the film. One has seen many small films with good content going unnoticed only because there was no money available to make the public aware about the content-driven film. After making a good film, what is the sense if people don’t come to the cinemas simply because of lack of awareness?

Which seems to be the next big film, commercially speaking?

– Karan Johar and Viacom18’s JUGJUGG JEEYO. From its trailers, it looks like Raj Mehta has made another fantastic entertainer after GOOD NEWWZ.

Why did Samrat Prithviraj not take a flying start today?

– The film’s trailers and songs failed to generate excitement for the film among the paying public. Perhaps, that’s why producer Aditya Chopra released a second trailer of the film before the film’s release today (3rd June). The silver lining, however, is that collections showed a rise in many cities as the day progressed.

Does tax-exemption granted to films help boost their box-office collections?

– Since a state government can only exempt a film from its share of the GST (which is 9%), tax exemption does not really help too much as the reduction in ticket prices is not large. Also, exhibitors resent tax-exemption nowadays because the state government asks them to first deposit the GST with the treasury, and then apply for refund from the state. That means, exhibitors have to deposit the 9% GST which they don’t collect from the public, with the state government treasury. Needless to add, the refund takes forever to come. Several exhibitors, therefore, prefer to not screen the film at tax-free rates. Instead, they reduce ticket prices but charge 18% GST so that they don’t have to wait for years — yes, years! — to get the refund from the state governments.

With South stars like Yash, Jr. NTR, Ram Charan and Allu Arjun’s films scoring in Hindi, I had thought that the Hindi dubbed version of Kamal Haasan’s Vikram Hit List would also open well today. But I was wrong. Why did it open so poorly?

– Not all South stars are popular with the Hindi film-going audiences who seem to prefer younger heroes. Kamal Haasan starrers did not do well in Hindi-speaking areas even when he was young, so how could you expect VIKRAM HIT LIST to take a good start today? While on the film, let me inform you that its shows had to be cancelled in several cinemas due to absence of audience.