TOLLYWOOD IN TROUBLE IN AP

Donga Kollu, veteran actor Rajendra Prasad’s hit comedy film of late ‘80s, had a dialogue “housefull and collection nil,” that became very popular post the film’s release. Nothing perhaps holds truer to this dialogue than the fate of the Tollywood films being released in Andhra Pradesh.

A long list of big-budget films are lining up for release one after another starting with Balakrishna’s Akhanda, followed by Allu Arjun’s Pushpa. Then there is Rajamouli’s RRR and Pawan Kalyan’s Bhimla Naik. With Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy being firm on not allowing benefit shows in the name of which the exhibitors generally charge exorbitant prices, in lieu of what they’ve paid to producers for distribution rights, reducing the ticket fare and banning additional shows, the exhibitors are in a position where they can in no way recover their investment, however big a hit the film eventually turns out to be.

The recent jubilation of the film fraternity, thanks to the High Court staying Jagan’s new film and theatre regulations, was short-lived with the Division Bench of the same court putting the right to decide on ticket prices back in the government’s hands. At one stage Pawan Kalyan was so irritated that he threatened to screen his film free of cost across the state. Like most of the man’s other filmy dialogues, this too was just to play to the gallery, because it’s the producers and not him who get to decide whether he turns the movie into a big charity, losing crores of rupees of investment to its financiers.

A sad state indeed for the exhibitors, who might see their houses full, but sadly their collections nil!