Hindustan Times (Lucknow) - Hindustan Times (Lucknow) - Live
NO DESI SHOW IN CHINESE THEATRES? THE BIG RUSH!
As the ‘boycott China’ chorus grows louder, we find out what’s at stake for Hindi films in China
It goes without saying that the lockdown has spared no one, and that also includes a Lucknow-based horse-cart puller, Jumman Khan, who has been running his horse-cart in the lanes of the Uttar Pradesh capital for over 50 years now. Not many know that Khan also features in Shoojit Sircar’s new film, Gulabo Sitabo. In a scene, towards the end of the film, when a distraught Chunnan Mirza Nawab [played by Amitabh Bachchan] is sitting on a horse-cart, Khan can also be seen in the background, on his horse-cart.
Now, we have learnt that as Khan — who hasn’t taken out his horse-cart for three months now — is finding the going difficult due to Covid-19 induced lockdown, Sircar has reached out to help him. Apparently, when Sircar’s attention was drawn towards Khan’s plight through social media, the filmmaker “immediately instructed his team to look for Khan”.
Since the scene [from Gulabo Sitabo] in question was shot in Bara Imambara, the team looked for Khan throughout Wednesday around the same locality, and finally located him by the end of the day. “I am happy that my team could get their hands on Khan’s number. We have already reached out to him, and will do whatever is required for his well-being, financially and otherwise. I am thankful that Khan’s plight was brought to my attention,” says Sircar, adding that the scene in question was shot “at the real location [Bara Imambara]”. “Since the idea was to keep it all authentic and believable, we had used Khan and his horse-cart in the background, instead of having an actor,” he says.
Khan, in an interview, has apparently stated that he, as well as his horse, hasn’t had full meals for close to three months now. “Our work was already dependent on outstation tourists due to autorickshaws and e-rickshaws, and now, due to the lockdown, since people have stopped coming so, it has become very difficult to earn any income,” concludes Sircar.
SActor Ali Fazal’s mother passed away on the morning of June 17 in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. The actor had flown to Lucknow on Monday to be by his mother’s bedside as she was critical.
The funeral took place in attendance of his extended family, who are by Fazal’s side in this difficult moment. “Though his parents were separated, Ali is close to his maternal cousins and paternal family as well. Ali is an only child and his cousins have been a huge support and have been with him throughout. His mother’s death was all quite sudden, due to health complications,” says a source. ushant Singh Rajput’s sudden demise has caused a lot of uproar among fans and the industry. While the Mumbai Police is said to be
Fazal’s spokesperson on Wednesday evening, issued a statement on behalf of him, saying his mother passed away “after quick succession of health complications”. The actor also tweeted a photo of his mother, and wrote down a tribute for her.
Fazal tweeted, “Thank you Everyone for this overwhelming outpour of love and support. Main dheere dheere sabko msg back karoonga. Just, abhi past tense ki aadat daal loon. Thank you again. This year needs only more of this love.
Sabke liye. Duaaein.” investigating the cause behind Rajput’s suicide, his father and his sisters have recorded a statement with the police saying they don’t suspect foul play. His father, in his statement, also added that Rajput often felt low. However, he wasn’t aware that he was depressed and was being treated for the same.
Rajput’s sister, Shweta Singh Kirti, also took to Facebook to pen a heartfelt note about her late brother. “Mera baby, mera Babu mera Bachcha is not physically present with us anymore and it is ok I know u were in a lot of pain and I know u were a fighter and u were bravely fighting it. Sorry mera Sona sorry for all the pain u had to go throughif I could I would hav taken all ur pain and given all my happiness to u... (sic),” she wrote.
Of late, China has emerged as a lucrative market for Hindi films, though it’s still not anywhere near other overseas countries such as US, UK or Europe. PK which released in China in 2015, Dangal in 2017, Secret Superstar, Bajrangi Bhaijaan (BB) and Hindi Medium in 2018 and Andhadhun have had dream run at the China box office.
However, the present situation in eastern Ladakh, where 20 soldiers of the Indian Army were killed in a violent confrontation with Chinese troops in Galwan Valley late on Monday, has posed the question of whether Indian films will cease to release in the neighbouring country.
While Dangal earned a whopping ₹1,908 crore, Secret Superstar raked in ₹874 crore. Likewise, PK made ₹831 crore, even as Andhadhun touched ₹324 crore figure in China, while BB also crossed ₹300 crore mark.
Filmmaker Nikkhil Advani refuses to look at the balance sheets. “If 20 of our soldiers have been brutally killed, there’s no question of even talking or thinking about having our films released there, or how much financial losses — miniscule or big — it will entail. Hypothetically, if we are in such a tense situation with a country that contributes in a big way to our overseas film business, will we think of releasing films there? No, I don’t think so,” he says.
Filmmaker Sanjay Gupta, whose Kaabil released recently in China, admits that China is “undoubtedly the fastest growing movie market in the world”. “But Hindi films don’t have a definite market share there yet, with a very negligible business. So, it’s not like we are going to lose out on a huge pie if we skip China,” says Gupta. Exhibitor-distributor Akshaye
Till now, a number of Hindi films have hit Chinese big screens starting with 3 Idiots and PK among others. Of late, Hindi films like Hichki, Andhadhun, Kaa and Mom released in the neighbouring country to varying degrees of success. In April, reports suggested that Hrithik Roshan-starrer Super 30 will release in China once the situation becomes ‘normal’ after Coronavirus pandemic. We tried to reach out to Reliance Entertainment Group CEO Shibasish Sarkar about the same, but he refused to comment.
Rathi puts it in perspective. “It’s a producer’s call. Moneywise, you don’t stand to lose much. So, our filmmakers can skip it,” he says.
Film trade expert Amul Vikas Mohan feels that film industry is most likely to take a stand on the matter. “I will be shocked if they don’t. I understand that hina is a brand new market, d movies are doing well ere. But regardless of the ancial aspect, the triotic feeling is uch stronger and at will affect cisions,” he says. rade analyst Atul ohan also agrees that en emotions run high he country, it won’t be siness as usual for the industry.
Com den har have migh duri nev un de
sDespite the whole monstrosity about the China market, Rathi notes that revenue-wise, not releasing films in China will not make much of a difference to the overall scheme of things.
“China has a policy where they allow only a limited number of foreign language films to release. So, we weren’t looking at the release of more than three to four Indian films there anyway. Plus, the business policies that the Chinese entertainment industry has is such that out of the big money that a film makes, a very small share comes to the producers,” Rathi explains.
While it indeed is lucrative for Indian filmmakers to release their films directly on 25,000 screens in China, the Covid-19 pandemic has anyway dented that prospect and cast a cloud of uncertainty about theatres opening in such large numbers.
Joginder Tuteja says, “It will take two months for an Indian film to get a clearance for release there. The films which are going to release are anyway old, they will go there, release silently and come back. It won’t make much of an impact,” he shares.