What did you think of the trailer of Toxic: A Fairy Tale For Grown-Ups? Why is there negative talk about it in the trade?
– The trailer is terrific. There are people in the trade who feel that the trailer does not serve the purpose as one can’t understand the story. Our point is that the trailer need not always reveal the story; sometimes, it is more than enough if it succeeds in creating intrigue. And the trailer of TOXIC: A FAIRY TALE FOR GROWN-UPS has done that — it has created so much intrigue that it has served its purpose. Frankly, the job of a film trailer is to get the public interested in watching the film on the opening day or in the opening weekend! The trailer of TOXIC: A FAIRY TALE FOR GROWN-UPS has absolutely and completely done that. You can be sure that the film will open to bumper houses on 26th August.
Why do you think, this week’s Awarapan 2 has taken a better start than Batwara 1947? After all, Batwara 1947 is a bigger film — bigger stars, bigger budget.
– Bigger budgets don’t always ensure bigger openings. Overall, the appeal of AWARAPAN 2 for the youth was greater than that of BATWARA 1947. Since the initial value of a film is mostly decided by how the youngsters perceive a film (because they comprise a good part of the first day’s audience), AWARAPAN 2 took a far better start than BATWARA 1947. Since BATWARA 1947, at the core, is the story of an old lady (character played by Shabana Azmi) who refuses to leave her home in Lahore, it did not catch the fancy of the young public. Of course, if the film is loved by the audience and its word of mouth is positive, collections can pick up. But a flying start for the film was, in any case, a difficult goal to reach.
Haven’t the producers of Batwara 1947 and Awarapan 2 taken a risk by releasing their films this week? I ask this question because after just two weeks, cinemas are all expected to rush to accommodate Toxic: A Fairy Tale For Grown-Ups in as many cinemas and shows as possible.
– Not after two complete weeks, TOXIC: A FAIRY TALE FOR GROWN-UPS will release after just 12 days — on 26th August (Wednesday). So, in a way, BATWARA 1947 and AWARAPAN 2 will both get a clear playing field for just 12 days, not even for two complete weeks. But that’s how this trade functions. New films release week after week. And so, two weeks (in this case, 12 days) without a major opposition is quite good.