Monopoly (not the board game) — defined, in this context, as a desire to retain exclusivity of film screenings, or hold the privileged right of first refusal — has kicked up a storm in the Tamil film industry between two key stakeholders: producers and theatre owners.
What triggered all this? A seemingly innocuous bit of news that the Tamil film Ponmagal Vandhal, starring Jyotika in the lead, and produced by actor Suriya’s 2D Entertainment, will have a digital streaming première on Amazon Prime Video instead of a theatrical release. The response from theatre owners was prompt: R Panneerselvam, general secretary, Tamil Nadu Theatre Owners Association (TNTOA), issued a statement that used words such as “shocked” while describing the producer’s move as opportunistic and “breaking conventions”. The punchline followed next. Panneerselvam threatened that theatre owners will boycott screening films produced by 2D Entertainment in the future. Rakesh Gowthaman, proprietor of Vettri theatres in Chromepet, Chennai, tweeted: “Let movies be made & released exclusively for OTT. I personally have nothing against it. The same way let the theatre releases also stand exclusive. The creator/producer of the content shud make that choice before hand & market it so there is no confusion for anyone. (sic)”
Manufacturing dissent
This line of messaging kicked industry gear into action. In the Tamil film Industry, actor-producer Suriya, with 45 films (nine of it as producer) to his credit, is as big a fish as they come. The response was a massive outpouring of support from fellow producers.
“This stance is not right. Had there not been a lockdown, the film would have released in theatres in March as planned, and it would have released online in May. [The producer] cannot pull out of an agreement they have with Amazon,” says veteran producer-distributor Kalaipuli S Thanu, who has bankrolled hit films like Asuran, Kabali and Theri in recent years. Producer T Siva of Amma Creations adds: “This decision is like snatching our basic trade freedom. Selling content to Over The Top (OTT) platforms is a producer’s right. If an opportunity presents in this crisis, then any producer will take it.” A statement signed by over three dozen names who identify as Tamil film producers, including Rajsekar Pandian, one of the key people at 2D Entertainment, followed. “A film producer has all the right to exploit his film in every possible way by selling the rights available for his film to recover his investment,” the statement read.
A still from ‘Master’ | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
At this point, the president of TNTOA, Tiruppur Subramaniam, responded by reviving a decades-long gripe held by producers, which is that theatres do not afford space for small-budget films. “Our friends want to talk about rights. Did [producers] not realise that it is a theatre owner’s right to decide which film to screen and for how many shows. ‘Rights’ are not exclusive to producers,” Subramaniam says, in a recorded voice note that also included veiled threats about “consequences” if producers were to ever bring up issues like the pricing of popcorn, parking and online ticketing charges. This voice note too was challenged, and more controversy followed.
The nationwide lockdown caused by COVID-19, which suspended film shoots and shut theatres, has kicked the Tamil film industry to the curb and put several producers holding completed films in their hands in a limbo. “I have been bombarded with calls from producers; they feel that OTT platforms are a major support system for small and medium-budget films. What they expect in return is to net a 10-15% profit or break even on their investment,” says a senior executive with a major OTT platform, who did not want to be named. However, N Ramaswamy, proprietor of Sri Thenandal Films production company, which bankrolled actor Vijay’s blockbuster Mersal, disputes the case. “Only big star films are bought outright by OTT platforms,” he says. Sources add that small films have to settle for a percentage pay with OTT platforms (works typically to a pay-per-view model), which is essentially the same business model theatres adopt — offering minimum guarantee for big-budget films while leaving smaller films in the lurch.
Newer terrain
Aparna Acharekar, programming head at Zee5 India, describes this as a “short-term opportunity” in a unique situation. “Eventually, [theatres and OTT] will have to learn to co-exist because it is the consumer mandate, and we have to be where the consumer is. It is similar to a new wave of films being produced in a particular industry or when theatres had to be re-imagined from a single-screen experience to multiplexes,” she says.
A still from ‘Soorarai Pottru’ | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
And it is not just the small fish. Big star films like Suriya’s own Soorarai Pottru and Vijay’s Master besides Dhanush’s Jagame Thandhiram were all ready for release in April and May, and have had to be postponed. OTT offers them an immediate, if unconventional, solution. For instance, there is speculation that the big-budget Bollywood film, the Akshay Kumar-starrer Laxmmi Bomb is also looking for a digital première. Disney+ Hotstar is touted as a potential buyer for this remake of the Tamil film Kanchana, which has been directed by Raghava Lawrence, and co-produced by Akshay Kumar. JJ Fredrick, director of Ponmagal Vandhal, says that he would have loved nothing more than to have his film release in a theatre but circumstances dictate otherwise. “People here are thinking that this situation will be alright tomorrow or the day after. In the foreign markets, from what I heard, theatres have no chance of opening till August in Malaysia-Singapore, till September in Europe and till December in the USA. I want to watch my name pop up in the credits on a theatre screen. But when theatres reopen, we will have 10 big star films lined up for release one after the other. So the question, then, after waiting for six months, is when will be a good time to release my film? That is why my priority now is to ensure the film reaches an audience,” he adds.
Exhausting concern
It is not only Ponmagal Vandhal that is exploring the OTT option. Films stuck in limbo, either due to financial issues or due to unavailability of theatre screens, are deeming it a viable alternative. Already, RK Nagar, the Vaibhav-starrer produced by filmmaker Venkat Prabhu, released on Netflix a few days ago. And, according to Siva, there are at least a half-a-dozen films that have either secured a digital streaming agreement, or are in the process of signing one, with OTT platforms including the long-delayed Santhanam-starrer Server Sundaram and the Trisha-starrer Paramapadham Vilayattu. However, this decision plays into one of the concerns raised by Subramaniam in his audio note. “We are disappointed that no film shoots will happen for at least another 45 days, and if you exhaust all films in hand by streaming it on digital platforms, what films do we screen when we reopen theatres?” he asks. It is pertinent to note that when the Tamil film industry went on a 48-day strike in March-April 2018 due to a dispute over Virtual Print Fee charged by digital service providers like QUBE, theatres resorted to screening older films which still brought audience to theatres.
- When it comes to the finances of movie business, there are several issues where theatre owners and producers do not see eye-to-eye. Theatres refusing screen space or show times for small and medium-budget films is just the starting point. Producers have for long demanded a better cut out of the online ticketing business. Theatre owners and booking portals take the maximum split and small film producers are seldom offered such a deal. Revenue-sharing in advertisements that pop up before and during intermission of film screenings is another. The producers argue it is their content that brings the audience to a theatre and so, by the natural order of things, they should get a cut out of the money charged from advertisers, which the theatre owners have resisted so far. With the OTT platform now opening up, small and medium-budget producers are also heaving a sigh of relief that they do not need to pay a Virtual Print Fee to digital service providers like QUBE for every screening, which was the reason behind the 2018 strike as producers deemed the charges to be too high.
Actor-filmmaker R Parthiban, who is also a cast member of Ponmagal Vandhal, does not find symmetry with this line of argument from theatre owners. He asks if theatre owners realise just how much they contribute to the ever-lengthening queue of unreleased films because they refuse screens to a producer. “I experienced it first hand with my film Oththa Seruppu,” says Parthiban, of his critically-acclaimed film that is streaming on Netflix. “I begged the theatres to not pull my film, and they still did it even when audiences were coming to watch it. Their justification was that several new films were releasing every week. My question is, if that is creating a problem for them and if OTT platforms are willing to release a few of those films, why don’t they let go?” he says, adding, “Theatre owners should understand that the audience for OTT is different from the theatre audience. If I had only relied on theatres, then Oththa Seruppu would not have gained the wider recognition that it now has thanks to Netflix. My point is cinema theatres will not go out of existence. Look at the USA, where so many streaming platforms exist and still there are around 40,000 theatres. Tomorrow, if Rajinikanth or Vijay turn around and say that they will release their films on OTT platforms, what happens then?”
Stretching capacity
Except, it is easier said than done when it comes to purchasing a big-budget mega star film. “It would be inappropriate to assume or speculate that OTT players don’t have the wherewithal to buy [₹100 crore plus] films. It is about monetisation capability,” says Aparna. Besides, as a source in the OTT business puts it, should a film like Master come up for a digital release, it might spark a bidding war between streaming platforms. “Even the small film producers, when they approach an OTT platform, they say ‘Oh Netflix has quoted so much, Amazon has come up with this offer’. In six months’ time, another new OTT platform exclusively for Tamil content will launch, and you also have existing players like Sun NXT who are looking to widen their revenue models. All this doesn’t mean that if we buy a Vijay or Ajith film that theatres will shut down or that such a situation will ever come. What is happening with Netflix now? They are producing films and doing limited theatrical releases in the US and a few other territories,” the source says, suggesting that OTT platforms are more likely to turn producers in the future than causing cinema theatres to shut down.
Aparna Acharekar | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Parthiban has the final word: “I believe the theatre owners made these statements out of fear. It happens when a new business crops up.”
“[Releasing films on] OTT platforms can become the new normal,” opines filmmaker Thangar Bachan. It is, in fact, a boon to be able to watch films from one’s home. When people find this a comfortable option, it will become the new normal.”