YOU ASKED IT | 11 March, 2022

Why did Sajid Nadiadwala not release his Bachchhan Paandey on 4th March instead of 18th March? The film would’ve got a longer playing field. By releasing on 18th March, he will get only one week’s clear playing field as RRR is slated for release on 25th March.

– Your suggestion is right but Nadiadwala may have had his reasons to not get BACHCHHAN PAANDEY on 4th March. As you said, 4th March would’ve worked well for him as JHUND, even before release, was not looked at as a tough opposition for BACHCHHAN PANDEY. This week’s RADHE SHYAM and THE KASHMIR FILES would also not have posed tough competition to BP in its second week. In other words, that release strategy would’ve proved bountiful for the film and, to borrow from the title of Sajid Nadiadwala’s own forthcoming film, it would’ve been like both, Eid and Diwali for Nadiadwala or, in other words, KABHI EID KABHI DIWALI. And also, Holi (as it falls on 18th March, he would have got its benefit in the third week).

Why are producers always wary of promoting small films even if they have strong content?

– It will take some years for the mindset of producers to change. Actually, the public likes to make a beeline for star cast films and hence the initial which small films take is generally slow. Since business is mostly about the first two-three weeks, producers fear that if the film’s collections don’t pick up from the second or third day, the huge promotion cost will further increase their losses. Let’s put it this way: in the case of big films, they try to maximise their profits, but for small films, producers tend to minimise their losses right from the word ‘go’.

With the dubbed Hindi version of Valimai having had to bite the dust two weeks back, would it be right to say that the excitement around South films, born out of the stupendous success of Pushpa: The Rise Part 1, has reduced?

– Why just VALIMAI (dubbed)? This week’s RADHE SHYAM is also a South production which has opened to average houses and is carrying dull reports. Although it is not dubbed (it was shot in two languages — Tamil and Hindi), the fact remains that it is a South film.