Finally, there is some good news for the beleaguered Tamil film industry. Last week’s releases — Madhavan-Vijay Sethupathi-starrer Vikram Vedha and ‘Hiphop Tamizha’ Aadhi’s Meesaya Murukku — seem to have brought the smiles back. Christopher Nolan’s critically-acclaimed Dunkirk and Telugu filmmaker Sekhar Kammula’s Fidaa too have taken a good opening at the box office.
A spokesperson of SPI Cinemas says, “The footfalls across our properties during the weekend were great, compared to the last few weeks. The occupancy was as high as 90%, mainly because the new Tamil content worked with the audiences.”
Back in business
Trade circle experts point out that during the opening weekend, Vikram Vedha — which had a wide release in big screens — has grossed an impressive ₹8.50 crore (approx). Meesaya Murukku has done business of around ₹5.75 crore from a limited release in the state. Vikram Vedha clearly leads in the 3 Cs — Chennai, Chengalpet and Coimbatore — while in smaller stations in the State, MeesayaMurukku is doing better.
However, what has made the exhibitors happy is the revival in advance booking on the Internet. There was a hue and cry last week that the ticket booking sites were charging a lot for online reservation. Says a leading ticket booking company official, “Last week’s releases, especially Vikram Vedha and Dunkirk, have proved that content is king. If content is good and the promotions attractive, the audiences will prefer Internet booking during the opening weekend.”
The recent success of diverse Tamil content at the box office has revived the market in a big way. The distributors are willing to pick up different genres of films. All areas for Nibunan, which hits screens this week, have been sold out for an attractive price.
Sundar C’s Avni Movies, the producers of Meesaya Murukku, even held a success meet of the film three days after its release. Sundar C said, “I was very confident about the film. I’m happy to say that we will turn profitable at the end of the first week.”
Buoyed by the recent success of Tamil films, Lyca Productions picked up the Tamil rights of Mahesh Babu’s AR Murugadoss-directed Spyder for a rumoured ₹25 crore. And now, all eyes are on the August biggies — Dhanush’s VIP2 (scheduled for an August 4 release) and Ajith’s Vivegam (scheduled for the Independence Day weekend).
Meanwhile, the stand-off between the film industry and the State continues; the former wants only one tax (GST), while the latter demands additional local body taxes, atleast for non-Tamil film releases.