CINEMA, INTERRUPTED
The Indian film industry is bracing itself for a major blow, with cinemas closed, shoots stalled and releases postponed. In a bid to make up some of the losses, producers are now looking to OTT platforms
Reeling from the blow of shuttered cinemas and stalled shoots, the Indian film industry is holding its breath for a national release
AIR POLLUTION IS DOWN, the skies are clear and, after a long time, stars are visible in the night sky. The ones we are used to seeing on our big screen, though, are in lockdown. The coronavirus pandemic has spared no one. India’s film industry, worth an estimated Rs 191 billion as per the latest FICCI-EY Media and Entertainment report, has been silent, with all cinema halls shut, shoots called off and all releases postponed indefinitely. The Hindi film industry is estimated to have already suffered box office losses of at least Rs 600 crore since March 15 when cinema halls were asked to down their shutters. A host of big-ticket films lie finished but with no access to audiences. A cloud of uncertainty hangs over the film business and the coming few months pose a new set of challenges for the industry.
Unlike Disney which has announced revised release dates for its big-budget Hollywood spectacles—some scheduled for the last quarter of 2020 and others pushed to 2021—film studios in India don’t have any clarity about their 2020 release calendar. For Hindi films, producers of Sooryavanshi (originally to be released on March 27), ’83 (April 10), Gulabo Sitabo (April 17), Coolie No. 1 (May 1) and Jhund (May 8), will be among the first looking for new dates. “It won’t be practical or beneficial for anyone to release a film before October or November this year,” says Bhushan Kumar, chairman and managing director of T-Series. “Unless someone takes a chance [to release] in July or August when theatres are likely to open.”
The decision to reopen theatres, however, is entirely dependent on the government’s mandate. “We were the first ones to be asked to close down and there is no question that we will be the last ones to be allowed to open again,” Ajay Bijli, chairman, PVR Cinemas, told India Today TV recently. Bijli is also certain that occupancies will be low whenever the lockdown is lifted and that his multiplex empire will take a long time to restore business to pre-COVID-19 days. Meanwhile, PVR is looking at “reimagining the cinema space” by introducing measures like distancing between seats and rows and automated box office windows. “We will have to increase our already high standards of hygiene to make our consumers feel more comfortable,” he said.
A cinema hall with only 50 per cent seating occupancy, though, is not sound business for producers like Kumar whose earnings will take a huge hit. As producer
of at least 11 films that were slated for a 2020 release, Kumar knows he will have to push the big ticket ones to 2021 to at least break even if not have a shot at profits. For some of his mid-budget films, he is considering a digital and satellite release. “Streaming platforms are also very keen on getting some direct-to-digital films, for they, too, need exclusive content,” says Kumar. “That way, we can cover our costs, stay afloat and support our business.”
It will be a tough few months for show business. Budgets will be downsized, with producers urging filmmakers to give foreign shoots the axe and, instead, adapt their narratives to domestic settings. The profit cards of A-list actors such as Akshay Kumar, Salman Khan, Aamir Khan and Ajay Devgn will see a significant dip as theatrical collections both in India and overseas take a hit. A producer, requesting anonymity, says actors could be requested to take a pay cut to ensure that the show goes on.
It’s the industry’s daily wage earners—light and sound technicians, carpenters, spots, caterers, vanity van and generator providers to name a few—who will suffer the most with shoots being on hold. Projects are stuck midway and those scheduled to commence before monsoon have been further delayed. Salman Khan’s Radhe, which was supposed to be Bhai’s Eid gift to his fans, has a shoot schedule left. Shahid Kapoorstarrer Jersey was being shot in Chandigarh when the suspension order came in. The cast and crew of Bhushan Kumar’s Atrangi Re and Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 had to return to Mumbai from Varanasi and Jaipur respectively. Karan Johar’s multi-starrer period epic Takht, budgeted to be at least Rs 200 crore and supposed to kick off soon, is now in limbo.
While exercising social distanc
“Streaming platforms are also keen on getting some direct-todigital films, for they, too, will need exclusive content”
Bhushan Kumar producer and Chairman, T-Series
ing on a set or in an outdoor location is a difficult proposition, particularly for big-budget, large-scale productions, studios will have to look for ways to get maximum results with minimum crew. “We are all waiting for the decision the central government takes,” says the producer. “Right now, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi says, it’s ‘Jaan hai toh jahan hai [life first]. When your life is at stake, what losses can you think of?
Delays are part of every business.” But a delay necessitated by a pandemic is a disaster drama that only Steven Soderbergh foresaw in his film Contagion.
Tales from the South
As many as 25 Telugu films, big and small, with Rs 12,000 crore riding on them, are either still in the works, or have had their releases, due between March and June originally, deferred. The Chiranjeevi-starrer Acharya, a remake of a Malayalam film by Koratala Siva; actor-politician Pawan Kalyan’s Vakeel Saab, a remake of the Hindi film Pink; and Nishabdham, starring Anushka Shetty of Baahubali fame, were due for release in the summer. S.S. Rajamouli’s Rs 400 crore period action drama, RRR, while due for release in January 2021, will be striving to meet deadlines with visual effects studios the world over being shut. Fans of Tamil star Vijay remain hopeful that his upcoming release, Master, initially scheduled for release on April 9, can hit screens by June 22 to coincide with his birthday.
“We can’t predict the outcome of what is a global phenomenon,” says Tamil producer G. Dhananjayan. “We have lost the summer holiday schedule. This is always the best time for people to come to the theatres with their family.” Small budget film producers are being encouraged to negotiate with Amazon, Netflix and other OTT platforms to recover their investments. Foreign markets for Tamil and Telugu movies are out of reach now and the situation can be gauged only when cinema halls in the US, UK, UAE, Singapore and Malaysia reopen. They contribute a major part of the revenue for big-ticket films starring superstars such as Rajinikanth, Vijay, Ajith, Prabhas, Ram Charan and Mahesh Babu.
Stream On
India was second only to the US in the total hours of video content watched online each week. A rise which—as per the FICCI-EY report—was further explained by a 33 per cent surge in original OTT content produced in India in 2019. The OTT paid subscriber base, currently estimated to be around 10 million, is growing fast and the lockdown and social distancing measures will only boost the numbers. It’s why studios like Dharma Productions have a separate division to create content solely for OTT platforms. The dwindling number of screens—down from 9,601 to 9,527 in just a year, with most being singlescreen theatres—makes the challenges for theatrical business manifold.
For Kumar, the bigger worry is that a five-week-long lockdown makes viewers settle into watch-from-home entertainment format. Theatrical returns are still more substantial than for digital/ OTT and satellite rights combined. “God forbid viewers start feeling it is better they are saving money and decide to watch only digitally,” says Kumar. The film industry for now can only hope for a miracle—in this case, scientists developing a vaccine quickly to contain the spread of COVID-19. Until then, the stars are truly just like us: stuck at home. ■