Whenever there are two major releases on a Friday, there is tension for the exhibitors as well as the distributors and producers of the two films vis-à-vis allotment of shows. But this week has been different because although the showcasing gave many a sleepless nights to the parties concerned, the matter defied solution till late tonight (Thursday, December 21). That is to say, this fight between the two films lasted the longest! And just imagine, one (Dunki) of those two films has already been released while the other (Salaar (dubbed)) is slated for release tomorrow (Friday, December 22).
While the distributors of Dunki insisted on more shows for their film than those allotted or to be allotted to Salaar (dubbed), the distributors of Salaar (dubbed) wanted equality in the allotment of shows. In the case of two-screen multiplexes, the distributors of Salaar (dubbed) wanted that one screen be given to each of the two films. But the problem arose in the case of three-screen multiplexes and those multiplexes with more than three screens. Ultimately, Dunki has been given more screens/shows than Salaar (dubbed). The position in the single-screen cinemas was even more pathetic. While the distributors of Dunki insisted on not sharing shows at all, the distributors of Salaar (dubbed) wanted at least two of the four or five shows per day in the single-screen cinemas. The matter was resolved as late as around 10 p.m. today. Actually, it could hardly be termed a resolution of the matter because there wasn’t a single solution applicable to all the single-screen cinemas. The sharing/non-sharing was different for different single-screen cinemas and for different exhibitors/controllers. But Dunki managed to get all the shows at many a single-screen cinema. It would surprise many to know that some single-screen cinemas screened Dunki in all the shows today (Thursday) but would be screening Salaar (dubbed) from tomorrow (Friday) onwards. Yes, you read it right: Dunki was screened for just a day!
The result of this battle royale was that the advance booking for both the films for Friday either did not open till Thursday night or opened only partially (read for some shows only).
To pinpoint who was wrong and who was right in this battle is an impossibility. The distributors of both the films were right in their respective places while each of them was wrong when viewed from the other’s point of view. The poor exhibitors were sandwiched between the devil and the deep sea. For, the all-India distributors of the two films (PEN Marudhar Cine Entertainment for Dunki and AA Films for Salaar (dubbed)) are both powerful and so the exhibitors (both, multiplexes and single-screen cinemas) couldn’t antagonise either of them.