Vagaries of success

changing dynamics

When was it that we last had a film that ran for 100 days, or better, completed 25 weeks or more in theatres? Back in the ‘60s and ‘70s, Hindi cinema could boast of several films celebrating golden jubilees in a single year.

For instance, in 1970, while Manmohan Desai’s Saccha Jhutha and Rajshri Productions’ Jeevan Mrityu ran for 100 weeks (including some weeks only in noon shows that were called matinees) and Mohan Segal’s Sawan Bhadon and Vijay Anand’s Johny Mera Naam (the year’s biggest hit) for 50 weeks. We saw a record number of silver jubilees led by Khilona, Sharafat, Tum Haseen Main Jawan, Safar, Geet, The Train, Humjoli and at least 10 more 25-weekers besides the even more average runners that completed either 100 days or 20 weeks.

Today, when we talk about all-time biggest grossers of Hindi cinema like 3 Idiots, Dabangg or Bodyguard, we calculate their success in terms of money, not footfalls. Sholay (1975), considered the biggest hit in the history of Indian cinema, has made over Rs 15 crore at a time when  highest priced tickets at expensive theatres cost Rs 6.60 and there was no other source of income for producers (like DVDs or satellite rights). Today’s ‘all-time biggest blockbuster’ 3 Idiots (2009) has made Rs 270 crore, followed by Dabangg (2010) at Rs 187 crore, and Bodyguard (2011), which comes close as it is still running. However, ticket rates today are 30 to 40 times higher than they were in 1975. Therefore, if Sholay would have released today, it would have made around Rs 500 crore, while a Hum Aapke Hain Koun (1994) and Gadar-Ek Prem Katha (2001) would have made over Rs 300 crore each!

There are two more crucial aspects to be considered. Firstly, the cost of a film (for the distributor more than the producer) decides the status of a film’s success  — from super-hit to disaster — because it is about the ratio of profit versus cost. The second aspect is that the dynamics of film finance has changed drastically. A top producer once said, “Today, there are multiple rights that give additional income, like music rights, television and satellite rights, home video rights, overseas rights and so on, besides in-film advertising and mutually-beneficial tie-ups like new media, gaming and even FM radio tie-ups.”

Mukesh and Mahesh Bhatt are candid about how smart costing can boost industry fortunes. We are now actually in an era when filmmakers, who control their budgets or/and make smart deals have “table profits” (that is, deals struck with various above partners or parties) and theoretically do not need a single viewer with a paid ticket because they have already made a profit. Most of the films churned out of the Bhatt camp fall into this category, which is why films like Murder, Raaz and Murder 2 are classified as blockbusters on their scale. In 2004, Murder, which made Rs 17 crore (cost about Rs 4 crore) is considered a bigger hit than Main Hoon Na, which earned Rs 34 crore but cost around Rs 15 crore.

Then, we have high ticket prices. In multiplexes, tickets can cost as high as Rs 400-plus, while in the overseas market, they cost in pounds and dollars. For certain films, overseas markets have even proved a face-saver. Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna, My Name Is Khan, Dil Se… and Baabul are four such cases. They were box-office disasters in India but earned huge revenues in some or all major NRI markets (USA, UK, Australia, and to a lesser extent, in Middle-Eastern countries, Canada and South Africa).

Says veteran trade analyst and consultant Amod Mehra, “It is true that some films have celebrated silver and golden jubilees in the past decade, but most of these ‘occasions’ are just forced runs in theatres for the sake of prestige, where you will have a movie running in a near-empty hall. The last genuine golden jubilees were probably Gadar – Ek Prem Katha and Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham — exactly ten years ago. The same is largely true for silver jubilees.”

Elaborating on the causes of this phenomenon, Mehra says that it is as much about life and changing values as about evolving technology. “People have changed, so have values. Films come and go and no one tends to remember them beyond a few weeks of release.

Sholay is still remembered, but Ready isn’t, even if it released three months ago,” he says reflectively. He adds, “Take Mumbai for instance. Years ago, south Mumbai had just five theatres. Now, just one multiplex can have five different screens. To add to that, you have many more theatres in a single area. If tickets are not available in one theatre, the next option is to just travel a couple of kilometers and get tickets in another one. Also, film buffs are spoilt for choice when it comes to show timings. Everyone gets to watch a film in the first three or four days of its release. So the question of movies running for weeks in theatres does not arise.”

Mehra elaborates further, “Most films have no shelf-life today. Their official DVDs are out in a few weeks and they are broadcasted on satellite television a few months after they release, which means that they cannot generate any more theatrical business. But I do not see home video, television broadcast or even piracy as the root cause of this trend. The problem is that the whole experience of watching a movie has changed.”

Mehra also explains that in today’s times, if a film flops, it has a lot more to lose. “Mausam stands to lose at least 20 crore because from the fourth day itself, its collections started dwindling. In the past,  films could gradually recover their investment with re-runs, unlike today. In fact, movies like Half-Ticket and Jhuk Gaya Aasmaan made big money for their filmmakers only due to re-runs.”

Finally, an amusing offshoot of this changing parameter is how the definition of a film’s success has changed. Now, it’s not about celebrating a golden jubilee or throwing a 100-day run party. Success parties are held in the first week itself or when a film runs for 50 days. There have been cases of ‘super-hits’ being celebrated at a time when the film is running at odd single shows in a few theatres and nowhere else. After all, what matters to producers today is that the money has already come in, or will eventually. Who needs mundane things like theatrical runs when investors have already made their money? Silver and golden jubilees: what’s that?