WITH BUT A HANDFUL OF BIG RELEASES IN STORE...

Is Black Friday staring us in the face?

The warning bells are ringing loud and clear. Distributors and exhibitors are a worried lot. After Anil Sharma’s Karisma Kapoor-Bobby Deol starrer, Ashiq there are no other big-budget, expected box-office bonanzas in sight for the next six months. Subhash Ghai’s Yaadein, Karan Johar’s Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham, Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Devdas and Dreamz Unlimited’s Ashoka will only make an appearance in the second half of the year. Satish Kaushik’s Badhai Ho Badhai has just begun as has the Salman-Sunil Shetty starrer, Chori Mera Kaam and even if they make good progress they won’t hit the theatres before the fag end of 2001. Deewangee starring Sanjay Dutt, Ajay Devgan, Karisma Kapoor and Raveena Tandon also won’t weave its magic before at least another six months. Karan Johar’s Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham is slated for a Diwali release and the other Bachchan bonanza, Dharmesh Darshan’s Ek Rishtaa—The Bond Of Love should also be released around the same time. Govinda and Raveena’s Kunwarji,Mahesh Manjrekar’s Tere Mere Saath Rahen, Afzal Khan’s Mehbooba and the Ajay-Amisha starrer Parwana are other films miles away from the finish. The industry now has its hopes pinned on the Shah Rukh-Madhuri-Salman starrer, Hum Aapke Hai Sanam , Sunil-Aishwarya’s Hum Panchi Ek Daal Ke and Radheysham Seetaram. Jodi No.1, Khullam Khulla Pyar Karenge, Maa Tujhe Salam, Na Tum Jane Na Hum, Singer, Zamanat and Aap Mujhe Achhe Lagne Lage which have completed 10-15 reels are other star-studded films that could make it in the first half. But obviously they are not enough.

According to trade sources 205 films are under production and more than 70 per cent of them are low budget films. Another 50 will never be completed. There’s just a handful of big-budget entertainers and they are not enough to feed the hundreds of theatres across the country. The trade is wondering how to lure crowds to the theatres. Attendance has already come down by 30 per cent owning to cable piracy and the satellite boom and now this!

Is Black Friday staring our film industry in the face? Some prominent producers and distributors have their say:

NO HAPPY ENDING IN SIGHT
NN Sippy
“The last two years have been bad and the eclipse hasn’t passed. The future is uncertain because no big film that can sustain audience interest over a long time, is in sight. It’ll be a long time before we have another Yash Chopra or Subhash Ghai film to look forward to. Dark days are ahead...

We are soon going to lose Minerva Cinema. We’ve been told it will soon be converted into a mini theatre. Apsara is reportedly going the same way. And who can blame the theatre owners for their decision? There are so few star-studded films being made. And so few films celebrating jubilees. Things were so much better in the past. My films —Sargam , Woh Kaun Thi and Gumnaam were all jubilee hits. I distributed Phool Aur Patthar and Hero and they also had jubilee runs. Today no hit film runs more than 15 weeks. They celebrate jubilees only by running on morning and matinee shows after the first 15 weeks.

Distributors want good films. So do the exhibitors to fill their theatres. But where are these films?”, asks NN Sippy, president, Indian Motion Picture Distributors Association.

The writing’s on the wall
FC Mehra
“Yes, I am thinking of converting Minerva, that with 1500 seats, is the biggest theatre in Mumbai into a complex. We’ll keep the preview theatre on the first floor, renovate it and increase the number of seats to 400. But the main cinema hall will have to be pulled down unless I get a big hit soon. I have already got permission from the government to close down Minerva.
I have one big film, Ashiq coming up and I’m hoping it’ll bring in the kind of crowds I was used to seeing outside my theatre when films like Sholay were screened. l haven’t seen such big crowds recently. Today no film runs after the initial three days. How long can I run a near empty theatre?

I have huge overheads. My electricity bill every month exceeds Rs 2 lakh. Property taxes every month go up to Rs 3 lakhs. I have 43 people on my staff and their wages total another Rs 3 lakh. Unless I have long queues outside my theatre as I used to, how can the business survive?

Distributors used to pay me in advance to book my theatre. Today I have to pay the distributor to get films I think could benefit my cinema. It is not viable. And I don’t see the situation improving in the near future. That is why I have taken the decision of converting the theatre into a shopping complex.

I bought Minerva way back in 1953 and made it the biggest cinema hall in Mumbai, bigger than even Metro. It took me eight months to complete the renovation. It opened with the Raaj Kumar-Raakhee-Hema Malini starrer, Lal Patthar, a year later. In the good old days I needed only a dozen films to keep my theatre houseful through the year. Today I need 20-25 because no film runs for more than four weeks. I know even my mini theatre will go empty but I have to keep that going because there is a rule that every theatre owner who converts his cinema hall into a shopping plaza has to maintain at least one mini cinema,” mourns the producer-exhibitor.

The stuff of nightmares
Tilak Raj Magan
“The situation is nightmarish. With TV giving viewers a choice of entertainment round the clock, producers have to come up with good, meaningful products to bring people to the theatres. Today cinema is not the only source of entertainment. It is no longer enough to sign a couple of big names, arrange for finance and shoot a film secure in the knowledge that it will be a money grosser. Today films are just not running!

We want to organise a national seminar and workshop so that producers, distributors and exhibitors can sit across the table and thrash out the problems they are facing. Problems that stem from lack of revenue, and the drop in audience turn-out. Unfortunately, we haven’t been able to whip up much enthusiasm for the proposal. But it is high time the producers started rethinking their strategies. Overseas, music and satellite rights still bring in good money but once these lucrative markets dry up up our industry will be in the doldrums. As it is, today no distributor wants to take the risk of buying a film. Three to four of them get together to buy a film not just to share expenses but also the risks. Today even films wrapped up in a fortnight and made on a shoe-string budget of Rs 15-20 lakh have no buyers. My films are sold on a commission or advance basis. The scenario is disturbing,” says the general secretary of the Film Federation of India.

Bad days for the biggies
Surinder Kapoor
“Yes, there is a shortage of big films this year. Next year, it will be even worse. The costs of production have escalated to such an extent that today a filmmaker finds it hard to complete a film. He’s not the only one suffering. Distributors and exhibitors are equally disturbed because films are not running, not even overseas, even though distributors pay a whopping amount for the rights.

In the past Dilip Kumar, Raj Kapoor and Dev Anand were big names. And their names ensured that the A grade films they starred in had jubilee runs. Bharat Bhushan and Pradeep Kumar gave their share of hits and so did Sunil Dutt, Rajendra Kumar and Dharmendra. Today we have only a handful of stars and they can’t be expected to work in every film being made. Even the ones that have them don’t sell. Is it surprising then that few want to invest in a big film today?” asks the producer.

The slackness is all-pervasive
Shakti Samanta
“There are so many reasons why films do not run. Story may not be good. Every star signed may not suit the character he is playing. And even if he suits, he may not have been properly exploited. That may be the reason why films have not been able to sustain. The cost of production has gone very high. It requires to be curtailed. Producers, stars, financiers and exhibitors should sit together and work out a solution to reduce the production cost. The stars are demanding Rs 2 crore to Rs 5 crore. If good films are not made, things will go from bad to worse. People get to see all kinds of films on television. We have been telling the government to stop cable piracy, but nothing is being done. Digital Video Discs (DVD) are made after the films are sent to the overseas market. This is another reason why film business is in bad shape. There is slackness all around,” opi-nes the president of the Indian Motion Picture Producers Association.

MSM Desai