With the government allowing theatres to operate at 100 percent capacity from February 1 on, Bollywood was expected to put out a release calendar but that hasn't happened, as cinema is a state subject and theatres needed a go-ahead from their local governments.
In the last few days, several state governments, especially in the south, have given their nod to theatres for full capacity but big markets like Maharashtra are yet to do that.
Telangana, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, West Bengal and Delhi are among the states that no longer have restrictions on the numbers of audience. Then why makers of films like Akshay Kumar's Sooryavanshi and Ranveer Singh-starrer 83 haven't yet announced release dates?
The problem, as pointed out by film-trade analyst Komal Nahta, is the overseas theatrical business.
According to him, Sooryavanshi and 83 are expected to do big business in overseas markets and the makers wouldn't want to let go off such a big share of revenue. In 2019, while overseas business shrank, it still added as much as Rs 2,700 crore to the India box office business.
Markets like the US and the UK contributed 23 percent and six percent to the box office revenues. But these two countries have not fully reopened yet as coronavirus infections continue to be high.
A report says that only 35 percent of cinemas in the US are open. Footfalls are also low. It is estimated that the UK saw the lowest cinema admissions last year.
The major issue for these markets is also the dearth of content. Even in Hollywood, makers of big ventures are putting off release dates and that's hurting the business.
In fact, it is said that the delay in the release of No Time to Die led to the temporary closure of the world's second-largest cinema chain, Cineworld, which has 660 cinemas in the UK and the US.
The 25th instalment in the James Bond series, which was supposed to release in April this year, has once again been delayed. The film is likely to release in October this year.
Studios are waiting for audiences to get vaccinated and come back to theatres. But that will leave theatres in markets like the US and UK with a big challenge to survive without big content till then.
This is why for the makers of big Bollywood ventures like Sooryavanshi and 83, the 100 percent capacity in Indian theatres is only half the battle won.