We live in happening times...we do. Recession, elections, IPL, Jarnail Singh’s flying shoe…all make up for a very interesting living. An extremely dynamic state of affairs has, however, been dampened…and by whom but Bollywood! Omigosh! Did I actually say that? You bet I did. The harbinger of emotions, the architect of our very own “Neverland” has plunged us into despair.
Hold on! Before you condemn me for blasphemy, let me clarify my stand. When I say Bollywood I mean not only the makers of our fantasies, but also those who showcase the fantasies…the exhibitors.
A very interesting war is going on in Filmistan, a dharmyuddh (term coined by Mr. Mukesh Bhatt) of sorts. For those of you who came in late here’s what the acrimony is all about.
The fight seems to be a culmination of a number of issues that the producers / distributors say are plaguing them for a number of years now, and allegedly all of it has been caused by the multiplex owners. At the heart of the disagreement lies the ticket sales’ revenue sharing model between the two. Whereas producers / distributors have demanded for a 50 % share of the above, multiplex owners want to stick to their old system of sharing between 40 -48 %, depending on the movie. The producers also want their share of the revenue to be delivered within a stipulated time. The producers also want to have final say on the number of screenings, the show timings et al. The multiplex owners will have none of it.
So whaddahell, you might say. What’s the big deal? But you see it is a big deal. In an industry worth about INR 1000 crores, 2 percent is B I G. Kahani mein twist is that all over the world producers/distributors get 50% of ticket revenues. So our film makers and distributors have finally decided that they ware being short charged by the multiplex owners. And consequently decided to revolt. And what better way to do it than going on a strike? And what better time to do it than when the country is in the grip of IPL fever!
The multiplexes have now decided to go on strike May 1st onwards. The alternate content strategy of the plexes is falling flat on their faces. Ek Se Bure Do and Pal Pal Dil Ke Pass flopped miserably, having brought in just a fraction of the pre-strike days footfalls. The spectacular flop of Tasveer also contributed to their woes. Now the multiplexes want to go on a strike of their own from May 1st, 2009. Uhhh, but how does it change anything?
The biggest loser in this entire fracas has been the audience. We have been deprived of our weekend dose of fantasy. Come on guys; resolve your differences without depriving us. Multiplex owners, you’ll charge an exorbitant sum of money for your tickets…give the producers 2% and move along. Reality has never been harder for us poor Indians, what with recession and its evil son, layoff, wrecking our lives. Give us a break…bring the movies on and let us indulge in some willing suspension of disbelief.
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Man, I haven’t seen a movie at a hall since Phulli was born for obvious reasons – she won’t let me. Still, whenever I pass by a multiplex, my wife Hina always reminds me that’s been more than a year now and I always tell her that Nashrah (Phulli) won’t let us see one peacefully.
ReplyDeleteBut, let me confess Phulli’s presence is not the only reason I avoid going to a movie hall. The reason is simple — I want to save my hard earned money as long as I can especially considering that the recession isn’t going to help my cause. If only the tickets were a bit cheaper, I would have thought of going to one.
True, these multiplexes are raking in a huge amount of moolah at the cost of poor producers. I would say producers are not the only ones affected by these greedy multiplex or mall owners. In fact, a majority of retailers in Delhi’s Saket and Vasant Kunj malls have shut shop to protest over DLF’s refusal to reduce rentals.
Somehow I feel the protests are going to spread across other malls in the city.
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ReplyDeletedada i'm actually happy abut dis strike thing u know...couldn't affrd it neway...
ReplyDeleteso now,njoying a sadistic pleasure seeing people who hav bucks 2 spnd in d same boat wid me...
Its hardly matter to me who is getting the bigger share of pie, the producers or the multiplex owners. its not goin to have any effect in the exorbitant tkt prices which we pay for the movies. If somebody would have taken care of ths part i.e the way a common movie lover is getting exploited thn it would hv been somethn to take notice. y dont ths
ReplyDeletemovie star reduce thr overhyped prices instd of engaging in futile broil(for us atleast). i belv ths can provide some breather for us in terms of reduced tkt prices