Creating Box Office Miracles!

New Delhi, Dec 17 (IANS) Isn’t it strange that a film is facing criticism from all corners, especially very strongly from women, and yet the production house keeps issuing collection figures of Rs 30-40 crore each day, and double those figures in the weekend!

Is it so simple for a film to add so many crores every day? It is not possible for Hollywood films, nor for a Hindi film. Is there even that kind of capacity in cinemas across India (of course, it is a fact that no film releases in all the cinemas of the country).

Also, are there so many film viewers filling up cinemas running the same film every day? Especially when a section of moviegoers, those who do not like gore and misogyny, all of which this film has on display in abundance, is vehemently opposed to it!

‘Animal’ is that film. Its fame has even reached Parliament, where one MP has questioned how and why such a film was even able to get a certificate for public exhibition.

In normal circumstances, the government would have immediately replaced the Chief of the Censor Board. Instead, the Board’s CEO has been replaced, probably because of so many controversies in the recent past. Even earlier, the government’s favourites have been replaced when complaints became a regular feature. But, here, it seems as if some people are more favourite than others.

On social media I have observed that the majority of opinions are against ‘Animal’ and what all it shows. What is more, it goes totally against its lead actor Ranbir Kapoor’s image.

And as the movie plays in the cinemas, there is a TV ad on air showing Shah Rukh Khan, sporting his ‘Jawan’ get up, selling a brand of iron roads used for construction and scaring the hell out of Ranbir and Alia Bhatt. Quite contrary to what Ranbir portrays on screen. And to think that yesteryear’s stars made careers entirely out of their screen persona. Today, the manta seems to be ‘anything for money’.

The public reaction notwithstanding, what is strange is that the PR department of the makers of ‘Animal’ issues box-office collections of the film daily, and these show that it is adding multi-crore figures to its tally every day. People are bound to ask how these numbers are possible when theatres have no audience!

The trick is in giving worldwide collections, besides giving out gross figures. That is not how the trade operated. It always gave out net collections (that is, total collections minus taxes).

There used to be a Rs 100-crore era and the media would lap up the figures of the films that made it to the ‘100 crore club’. Now, the trend is 500 crore- plus! Take a look at these figures: ‘Jawan’ – Rs 640 crore, ‘Pathan’ – Rs 542 crore, ‘Gadar 2’ – Rs 525 crore, and ‘Animal’ – Rs 470 crore (still counting).

You might as well stretch your imagination a bit more and make it Rs 1,000 crore. Why not?

These manipulations have gone so far as to even make the online booking platforms a party to the plan. Their charts online show ‘sold out’. Yet, if you press hard, you get not only tickets, but also seats of your choice.

In fact, these fake ‘house full’ charts drive away prospective ticket buyers. The ones depending on online booking would be deterred.

So, who are these manipulations benefiting?

No one else but the stars. A star does one or at best two films a year, and, sometimes has no new release, and that is not much money. Despite this, stars have to stay relevant to retain their celebrity value.

Because, being relevant and staying in the news is what earns you the real money from endorsements and other ventures, such as promoting popular sports, that keep you in the limelight.

Endorsements mean multi-crore earnings. Now, some stars have also learnt to use consumer product ads to promote their upcoming films.

The stars who get maximum endorsements and brand promotion assignments are Amitabh Bachchan and Pankaj Tripathi. Bachchan, because his status, is infallible and does not depend on the success or failure of his films. Pankaj Tripathi, because not only is he popular, but he is a natural and looks convincing in whatever product he promotes.

Even aspiring stars know the importance of being relevant. They do things to attract maximum likes and followers on social media. Strange as it may seem, nowadays, new talent is picked from social media according to their following and likes! Talent is out of fashion.

Naaz: Mumbai Loses Its Nerve Centre

Naaz Cinema Building in South Mumbai was the address for the film distribution and exhibition trade in the city, besides all the peripheral businesses that served and survived on these trades.

The cinema itself had seen some glorious days with a number of great hits screened there and the building above it was where just about every major film distributor and exhibitor worked from. Whether it was a first-time film producer, or a regular maker, a visit to Naaz was a must to sell his film.

I remember two such stories about unsold films, though there may be many more.

Producer K C Bokadia had made ‘Pyar Jhukta Nahin’ with Mithun Chakraborty and Padmini Kolhapure. Those days, when it came to a Mithun film, the distributors were spoilt for choice; they had flooded the market.

Bokadia took the proposal to the office of a distributor and got an offer which he did not like. He climbed two more stairs and visited another office, where he was offered Rs 50,000 more. Though the offer was still short of his expectations, he shook hands.

The distributor who bought his film dealt only in Gujarati film production and distribution, but the music of ‘Pyar Jhukta Nahin’ had helped clinch the deal. The fact that the film went on to become a golden jubilee hit is history now.

The other film was ‘Zanjeer’. Though the director, Prakash Mehra, had made a few films earlier. This was his home production and the lead actor, Amitabh Bachchan, had delivered many flops.

The Amitabh-Jaya pair, moreover, had failed in films such as ‘Bansi Birju’ and ‘Ek Nazar’. ‘Zanjeer’ had no face value as such and promised no draw.

Mehra had to sell his film to the Naaz distributor, Prakash Pictures, on their terms: Rs 4 lakh on ‘outright basis’, which meant the maker would get no share of the overflow. That was the norm in those days. Again, the rest is history. The film not only became a major all-time hit, but also launched Amitabh Bachchan in a big way.

Naaz building was a complete film market. If a distributor planned to release his film, he could book all the cinema halls needed in the Bombay Circuit in the same building.

The exhibitors who controlled cinema chains in the circuit also operated from the same building. Just walk to an office next door, and your film is ready for exhibition.

As was the tradition in India, all markets were location specific, be it for grains or medicines, cloth, sugar, jaggery and so on. Similar was the case with films. In Mumbai it was at Naaz Cinema, Bhagirath Palace, Chandni Chowk, in Delhi, Film Colony, Mandi Road, in Jalandhar, and Bentinck Street in Kolkata.

All these film trade markets now wear a deserted look. While the rest are functioning symbolically, Naaz Cinema in Mumbai has been officially shut down.

Naaz buries with its closure a million stories and a thousand deals, some of them seemingly impossible.

–IANS

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