CLASH OF THE TITANS

Big budget films clashing by the end of the year seems inevitable, so much so that now filmmakers have already started preparing for such battles. The biggest battle that has emerged this year is the battle of Panipat and Pagalpanti. While producerdirector Ashutosh Gowariker had already planned his war extravaganza to release on December 6, Anees Bazmee is also planning to release his crazy comedy on the same day. “Nowadays, filmmakers realise that there are umpteen films that are being made and released not only on OTT platforms but also in the cinemas. Last year, over 200 films were released in Hindi alone and then there are the big dubbed versions of the South film that have also started coming up and they occupy around 5- 6 slots in a year as well. Then there are Hollywood dubbed versions that account for a lot more. In this scenario, producers have started preparing for clashes, setting theatres aside, making deals with multiplexes and single screens in an effort to make sure that many films can release on the same day. Of course, the bigger producers with the bigger distributors will be able to pull in more screens initially, but then the sustenance comes from the content,” says Atul Mohan, editor, Complete Cinema.

But, unlike the South film industry, the presence of too many producers’ associations in Bollywood — Indian Motion Pictures Producer’s Association ( IMPPA), Western India Film Producers’ Association ( WIFPA), Indian Film and Television Producers Council and Film Producers Guild — has hampered the possibility of films being phased out during release to stop cannibalisation.

“There will still be time before they come to that. At the moment, people are planning film releases in a way that two films with the same theme and genre do not release on the same day,” adds Mohan.

— Sanskriti Media

— ATUL MOHAN EDITOR, COMPLETE CINEMA