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OPINION: Free fall of remakes, low ticket pricing not translating into footfalls; What’s wrong with Bollywood?
One of the key reasons for the failures of films like Jersey and Vikram Vedha was the fact that the film was consumed by audience in Hindi for free on YouTube and multiple other streaming platforms.
The failure of a well-made remake like Vikram Vedha has led to a narrative in the industry and media circles that the era of remakes is over. But the statement might be just partially true and we may reach a conclusion on this only after seeing the opening day biz of films like Drishyam 2, Cirkus, and Shehzada. The reason is clear, one of the key reasons for the failures of films like Jersey and Vikram Vedha was the fact that the film was available in Hindi for free on YouTube, and multiple other streaming platforms like Hotstar, and MX Player. Kartik Aaryan and team Shehzada were smart when they spoke to the stakeholders to stall the Hindi release of Allu Arjun’s Ala Vaikunthapuramuloo.
Why did Laal Singh Chaddha, Vikram Vedha & Jersey fail?
The two aforementioned films also premiered on TV multiple times before the pandemic and in the pandemic, which led to viewership in massive strata of audiences. Remaking such widely viewed content is always going to be a challenge, as despite being faithful and well-adapted, the audience wouldn’t splurge Rs 250/head to watch content they have already consumed. One might argue about Kabir Singh, but it’s important to note that Arjun Reddy was not dubbed in Hindi or widely consumed in until the release of Kabir Singh. It’s a case of remaking making the original a pop culture among the audience. Some argue that Laal Singh Chaddha failed as it was a remake. Some even blamed the boycott culture for the same.
An honest perspective on this aspect according to the author is in the fact that the storytelling in Forrest Gump can never be accepted by Indian audiences i.e. remaking Forrest Gump was a mistake in the first place. Even pre-pandemic, Laal Singh Chaddha might have fallen much short of the humongous expectations of an Aamir Khan film due to the slow pace, episodic screenplay, and not-so-universal template of story-telling. This author does not intend to defend the remake culture, of course, original stories should strive, but in times when content is at an all-time low, seeking inspiration from lesser-known stories isn’t a bad idea. Original stories will rise as we are in the transition phase, but as an industry, we need to understand the need of the audience and then deliver content, rather than listening to 100s within the industry.
Why is low ticket pricing not translating into footfalls?
The remake factor aside, another aspect which we are introspecting is the pricing. While the success of films on National Cinema Day gave out a message that low pricing is driving the audience to the cinema halls, we have not exactly managed to strike a balance post that. Producers are making random announcements of reduced prices, which probably don’t even reach their target audience. While low pricing does not necessarily assure success, it does act as an added incentive for the audience to step out for a mid-sized film, which looks well made from the pre-release assets. For eg. Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui is among the few appreciated films in the post-pandemic era, which had opted for popular pricing back in the day. There might be a large segment who skipped the film seeing tickets priced at Rs 300 and waited to watch the film on OTT instead four weeks later. A strategy to hammer the audience with low pricing for a film that tick marks all boxes of a quintessential Ayushmann Khurrana film might bring back his audience to the theater.
The industry itself has killed the mid-sized genre by bringing those films on OTT, and now in order to recultivate the habit of bringing the audience back to the big screen, the genuinely exciting mid-sized films need to hammer the reasonable price strategy in the mind of the cinema-going audience. An additional push is required for reviving good films in mid-sized space. National Cinema Day was a success as the date was hammered in the mind of the audience through constant communication. Some in the industry live in the delusion that low pricing would send out a signal to the audience that content is bad, but that’s far from the truth.
Is Bollywood Over?
There are enough obituaries written about the Hindi Film Industry, but an honest introspection of content in post-pandemic time and might lead to the conclusion that 99% of the films deserved to fail. Of course, the lifetime figures of the failures would have been higher than what they are at present, but the final verdict would have yet been a flop/disaster. We live in an industry that delivers 10 to 20 successes a year, and in 2022 as well might end up with 10 successful films. Most of the content released on the big screen has been devoid of youth appeal and hence, the failure. A combination of appeal for youth and the masses is working and driving collections in today’s world. The industry needs to stop running behind in creating perception for a film by manipulating the reviews and rather concentrate on curating content that actually excites the audience. The pandemic is full of examples when a badly reviewed film has actually done decent business and the highly appreciated films have been colossal failures.
While the industry is suffering, the credibility of media is also at an all-time low – due to all the influencer campaigns to create a positive perception. In a world where audience reviews are also out on Friday morning, one can’t afford to cheat, and one can’t afford to lie. While the film industry is slowly gathering the particles of success and learning from failures, it’s time for the media industry as well to reunite and rethink to gain the trust of the audience. A trailer, which appeals to the youth with one hit song is enough to make the right noise and excite the audience. The reviews help only and only if the film is genuinely good, but a highly manipulated review system can’t push a below-par film.
Course correction is happening all across, and its about learning the right things, rather than following all the false notions. Let’s hope, we all rise, shine and bloom together. Keep on reading, Pinkvilla.
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