Does the success of Munjya underline the theory that pre-release promotion is not so important after all? We all know that the producers of Munjya did not spend too much on the film’s publicity and promotion.

– No, it doesn’t prove that. What it does prove is that content matters more than anything and everything else. If the content is compelling, less promotion can work. But more often than not, a producer cannot be sure about how good or impactful his film is, before its release. It is only after the public gives a film its thumbs up does the producer realise that his content has worked. Also, like content has its own significance, promotion of a film has its own importance. MUNJYA becoming a runaway hit despite low promotion is an exception rather than the rule. Make no mistake about that! 

How did the Hindi dubbed version of Kalki 2898 AD take a good opening yesterday (June 27)? I ask this question because the murmurs in the trade were that the film would not open well because of low awareness.

– The promotion of the Hindi version may not have been as impactful as one would’ve wanted it to be. But the star cast did its magic. Prabhas has a huge fan following. Moreover, people like to watch him in action roles — and that’s what he is playing in KALKI 2898 AD. Amitabh Bachchan, Kamal Haasan and Deepika Padukone are also big names, which attracted the crowds. One more thing: the stunning visual effects were widely discussed once the trailer was out. As for the murmurs in trade circles, they gained ground because the advance booking for the film was not up to the mark. Tickets sold far more briskly in current booking.

With major films flopping left, right and centre, is it time for the industry to ring the alarm bell?

– Not really! It would be time to ring the alarm bell when good content repeatedly starts failing. The current scenario is not that. Bad films are flopping, so that shouldn’t be a cause for concern. By the way, KALKI 2898 AD, released yesterday, seems poised to be a major hit.

Can Munjya be termed a hit?

– Of course, it’s a major hit. For the first week’s share to be almost the same as the cost of the film is no mean achievement. What’s more, the second week’s collections have also been outstanding.

It is so easy for anyone to file a petition against a film’s release. Does the film industry have no remedy against this menace?

– None, till the government decides to come down heavily on such litigation which, more often than not, is frivolous.

It is believed that controversies invariably help a film’s box-office because the more talked about a film, the more number of people would want to watch it. Right or wrong?

– Wrong! A film which lacks merits cannot hope to benefit due to controversies surrounding it. The latest example is this week’s HAMARE BAARAH. Despite being in the news since the last more than a fortnight, it opened to dismal houses today.

They say, pre-release promotion of a film is very important. And yet, Munjya, with not much promotion, is doing well at the box-office. Can you explain?

– MUNJYA is an exception rather than the rule. The producers of the film did not have any star face to promote their film and hence decided to release it with less promotion, hoping that it would open well and they would then pump up the publicity if the audience gave the film their thumbs up. That’s exactly what happened. The content was so compelling that the film not only opened well but also picked up in the weekend. Incidentally, the ticket prices were brought down on the first day itself. That itself can be counted as great promotion for the film. By the way, horror films have inherent power to attract the public even with minimum promotion.

Since Munjya has a very regional flavour as the belief that an unmarried adolescent boy can become a munjya (spirit) if he dies within ten days of his mundan ceremony exists in parts of Maharashtra only, how did the makers not make it in Marathi?

– Credit to the producer for making the film in Hindi in spite of having a subject with a regional flavour and thereby expanding the reach of the subject. It was, perhaps, for this reason that Dinesh Vijan gave the reins of direction in the hands of a Marathi film director, Aditya Sarpotdar. And must say, Sarpotdar has made a film with universal appeal while retaining the local flavour of the subject.

Why did it take so many years for South film producers to realise that they should dub their films in Hindi too and release the dubbed Hindi version simultaneously with the original version?

– The South producers realised that dubbing the films simultaneously in Hindi was a good business proposition after the South heroes became household names in the rest of India, thanks to the Hindi dubbed versions of South films doing well on satellite television channels. The old South films were released (in Hindi) on satellite channels after several months of the release of their original versions. 

Did the Lok Sabha election results on 4th June adversely affect box-office collections that day?

– Not really. While members of the public were very interested in knowing the election results, it is not as if all or most of them wanted a minute-by-minute account of the results. Hence, the box-office was not adversely affected because of the live telecast of the vote counting.

What kind of initial do you expect Chandu Champion to take on 14th June?

– It will open well. The public is hungry for a film starring a popular actor because we’ve not had a film of this kind since a few weeks.

Do you think, the publicity and promotion of Kalki 2898 AD is up to the mark?

– No, it isn’t up to the mark, considering its canvas, scale and star cast. At least, the promotion of the Hindi dubbed version is still below the mark. It has three more weeks to go before the film hits the screens. 

Is its popular music the reason for Mr. & Mrs. Mahi taking an impressive initial today?

– Besides its hit music, the reasonably priced tickets (Rs. 99) due to the celebration of Cinema Lovers’ Day today is also a big reason for the good start.

Is Singham Again finally scheduled for release on Diwali this year? What about Telugu film Devara?

– Although SINGHAM AGAIN has not been announced for release on Diwali, the producers are eyeing that date. Meanwhile, BHOOL BHULAIYAA 3 has already been finalised for release on Diwali this year. As for DEVARA, the original as well as the dubbed versions are scheduled for release on Dassera. On Dassera is also scheduled another South film, KANGUVA (original Tamil as well as all the dubbed versions). Of course, it is unlikely that both the big South films will come on the same day. One of them will have to most likely be postponed.

If the trade can see the positive results of lower admission rates on the box-office, why don’t producers unite and reduce ticket prices?

– Unite? Multiplex chains decide ticket pricing, not the producers. It is not so easy to reduce admission rates. PVR-Inox, Cinepolis and several others don’t find it worth their while to reduce admission rates as, according to them, their overheads are way too high to permit permanent reduction of admission rates. But yes, it is likely that the multiplex chains might now see reason in reducing the rates for small and medium star-cast films. Warning: if the low rates become a regular feature, footfalls in multiplexes and cinemas may not always be high. Today’s (May 31) brisk ticket sales may also be because it is a one-off price reduction scheme.

What do you think of the trailer of Chandu Champion?

– It’s an impressive trailer. Since the story is uplifting and inspirational, it will resonate well with the audience. The producers should keep the tempo of the promotion going till the release and, if need be, thereafter too.

Is there an audience for a futuristic film like Kalki 2898 AD?

– Why not? There’s an audience for every kind of cinema which entertains. The audience don’t go to the cinemas basis the genre. They go to watch a film if it gives them value for money. Nothing more than that, nothing less than that!

In the pre-Covid days, ordinary films used to do at least average business at the ticket windows, but nowadays, such films bomb and don’t even recover their cost. Will the scene change for the better or will those times never return?

– In films as in life, never say never!    

What was the reason for last week’s Srikanth not opening to good houses when the trailer came in for so much praise?

– For content-driven films like SRIKANTH, which don’t boast of A-list stars, the public waits for the first day reports to filter in. Only if the reports are very good do they go to the cinemas, otherwise, they wait for it to come on OTT. Such films generally don’t take good initials unless, of course, the music is a big hit.

I am keen to make a film but making money is not the motive. I want to make a film which the world will remember as a great film. How should I go about it?

– The world will remember your film as a great film only if it succeeds at the box-office. So whether you like it or not, you will have to make a film which makes money. In other words, making money has to be your motive, else your film may go largely unnoticed!

There are so many heroes who are very talented but whose names don’t sell — neither among distributors nor among the paying public. Does that mean that it’s the end of the road for them?

– It could mean the end of the road for them unless they start accepting character roles or work in multi-hero films rather than insisting on playing solo lead roles. It is not easy for a film hero to accept that a film no longer sells on the strength of his name. But if he doesn’t face reality and change the course of his career, he could be rendered jobless. After all, no producer would want to lose money by signing a talented but unsaleable hero.    

How much has OTT affected theatrical business?

– Around 15-20%. Because there is a section of the audience, which has stopped going to the cinemas unless the content is very compelling. This sections gets its dose of entertainment from OTT and has stopped depending on cinemas for it. Half of this 15-20% consumes films on OTT while the other half doesn’t watch films now. The other half, which has stopped film consumption, only watches web series.

Is it true that several cinemas have shut down temporarily because no films are doing well?

– Yes, that’s true. Since hardly any film is faring well at the box-office, there isn’t enough software to play in the cinemas. Hence several screens have closed down temporarily.

There are so many films which get made but which, on the very look of it, don’t stand a chance to succeed at the box-office. How do such films get funded?

– Obviously, they get funded by persons who don’t understand either the economics of film production or the public tastes. There are many such people, who think they know a lot about films and their commercial viability but, in reality, know nothing!  

If content is king, why is the writer (instead of the director) not known as the captain of the ship?

– Because filmmaking involves many other aspects, besides writing. So while writing is of paramount importance for a film, there are other factors also which are very important and for which the director needs to take responsibility. It is the director who has to bring together all the talents and utilise them optimally to make a film. He has to cast correctly, extract great work from out of his actors, music director/s, lyricist/s, choreographers, cinematographers, action director, editor, sound recordist, etc. It is the director who converts the written material into a film.

It is said that there’s no dearth of talent in India. And yet, the success ratio in films is abysmally low! Isn’t this an anomaly?

– Yes, it is an anomaly. The reason for this anomaly is that the entry for new talent is very difficult. The big people in the industry don’t have the time to assess the potential of newcomers and hence a lot of talent is ‘rejected’ without being tested. Since stakes are so high, established producers prefer to work with tried and tested talent rather than investing time and big money in training and then giving break to new talent.

Can Hollywood wipe out Bollywood?

– Not for the next decade or two, at least. Maybe, never.  

With the big Eid releases having flopped, and not many promising films slated for release this year, what do you foresee for the trade?

– By “not many promising films”, you mean to say that not many films hold promise of doing big business, right? If yes, you are right! But small films may turn out to be the successful ones this year. Of course, they cannot bring the big numbers one associates with big-ticket entertainers but they can, nevertheless, help the trade stay afloat. Secondly, Hollywood and the South Indian industries just might save the day for the exhibition sector. So, in reality, exhibitors and the trade should be keeping their fingers crossed for small films, Hollywood films and South Indian cinema this year.

The producers and makers of both the Eid releases this year were supremely confident about their respective film’s stupendous success. Then what went wrong?

– People connected with any film being “supremely confident” about it doesn’t mean much because every producer and every filmmaker gets so emotionally attached to his film that it is difficult to imagine them to be objective at the time of the film’s release. Besides, if they don’t exhibit confidence in their product, who will? Thirdly, the reaction of trade people in preview shows before a film’s release is, more often than not, misguiding because most of the industry people never give their honest opinion if they don’t like a film. This further fortifies the producer and director’s belief that they have made a blockbuster. Frankly, nobody wants to hear negative comments about his film, more so at the time of release. The same was true in the cases of both the Eid releases — BADE MIYAN CHOTE MIYAN and MAIDAAN.

Is it true that Sunny Deol is not completing the films he had started before the release of Gadar 2? Why?

– It’s true. He is seeking a revision in his remuneration. In some cases, he is demanding a five- to tenfold hike in his fees! In a couple of cases, he is asking the producers to change the script. Both the demands are untenable and so, those films are in limbo.