The film industry and theatres across Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu are inching towards the proposed strike beginning March 2, as the stand-off between film producers and Digital Service Providers (DSPs) continues. At the time of this piece going to print, we were informed that last-minute negotiations are on. If the stalemate isn’t broken, theatres will not be able to screen any new film. Cinema halls might opt for closure or make do with old hits, if they are made available to them.
In the last few days, both the DSPs and film producers have been vocal about the bone of contention — VPF or visual projection fee and sharing of ad revenue. A detailed account of what led to this situation has been written about in The Hindu, but for those tuning in now, producers want DSPs such as Qube and UFO to lower their VPF, which currently stands at ₹ 22,500 per screen for a regional film, and the cost is borne by the producer.
In addition to the demand to lower this fee, producers also want the ad volume during film screenings to be curbed. Been subjected to 15 or 20 minutes ads at the theatres? Not only does that mar the film-viewing experience, but at a revenue level, the footfalls are shared by exhibitors and DSPs and not by producers.
“The terms are unfair. Only Indian films are charged a VPF while the same is not levied on international films screened here. Their clause doesn’t indicate a sunset period for the VPF. If there’s a time limit, say two or three years down the line, exhibitors will look at alternatives. We also explored the possibility of DSPs selling the projectors at a depreciating value to the exhibitors, but that too hasn’t worked out,” says leading producer Sureshbabu, who is also an exhibitor, and has been an active part of these negotiations.
While the exhibitors, film producers and DSPs slug it out to find a viable solution, it’s been a dismal box office situation for the Telugu industry this year. The biggest of the January releases, Agnyaathavasi, bit the dust while Bhaagamathie scraped through.
February saw a streak of hope in the urban hit Tholi Prema. Awe, made with a much smaller budget and catering to a limited section of viewers, did better than was expected by the makers. But the real big blockbuster that results in a significant money churn in the industry, has been elusive.
All eyes are now on star-studded films lined up for April and May. March is considered a lean period as most filmmakers hold back their releases until the end of exam season. “Sometimes, there is a spillover of prospectively good films from February and that rakes in the revenue for March. This year nothing significant has been lined up for the beginning of March, so the strike will not affect the industry. In fact, films that are still running in theatres this week, in 80% of the cases, will not even be able to recover the VPF cost. Earlier, if we encountered five to 10 bad weeks in a year, the trend has changed now. There are 20 good weeks and 30 bad ones. Content has to be good enough to draw people to theatres. If they can watch films on the digital media, they are not going to venture to the theatres unless it is worth it,” says Sureshbabu.
Expected summer biggies
The line-up includes:
Rangasthalam by Sukumar starring Ram Charan and Samantha.
Chal Mohan Ranga starring Nithiin, directed by Krishna Chaitanya.
Naa Peru Surya starring Allu Arjun, directed by Vakkantam Vamsi.
Bharat Ane Nenu starring Mahesh Babu, directed by Koratala Siva.
Krishnarjuna Yudham starring Nani in double role, directed by Merlapaka Gandhi.
Mahanati, the Savitri biopic helmed by Nag Ashwin.
Officer, which brings back the team of Ram Gopal Varma and Nagarjuna.
Kirrak party, the remake of the Kannada hit Kirik Party.
Savyasachi starring Naga Chaitanya and Madhavan, helmed by Chandoo Mondeti.
Director Indraganti Mohanakrishna’s Sammohanam.