Happy Diwali at last for cinema owners

With Sooryavanshi raking in Rs 77 crore over the weekend, makers and trade say film’s success proves big screens will have takers despite OTT boom
Mohar Basu, Uma Ramasubramanian (MID-DAY; November 9, 2021)

Over the past 19 months as OTT platforms gained prominence in India, the popular notion was that they may sound the death knell for theatres. All it took was a weekend and a big-budget Hindi film to dispel the idea. After a long wait, it was a glorious Diwali for Bollywood as Akshay Kumar’s Sooryavanshi amassed Rs 77.08 crore over the opening weekend. The figures are all the more encouraging when taken into account that Maharashtra theatres are operating at 50 per cent occupancy.

Shibasish Sarkar, chairman and CEO of IMAC, and former CEO, Reliance Entertainment, which produced the film, says this is the industry’s collective success. “Holding off the film’s release was a tough call. Every day posed a new challenge and a different uncertainty. This wasn’t a case of simple math where all we had to figure was whether the film would make profit or not. There was always a worry whether theatres would be functional and safe for people to visit. In the case of Sooryavanshi, the producers, actors, and director [Rohit Shetty] watched the film many times over, and believed that the movie would draw the audience back to [halls],” states Sarkar.

He adds that Sooryavanshi’s opening proves that the audience will head to the cinemas if promised a spectacular offering. “Some films are experienced best when a hall full of people are hooting and clapping. Other movies can be experienced on a television screen. These two mediums will continue to co-exist.”

The festive cheer isn’t restricted to Kumar’s cop caper. Chloe Zhao’s superhero film Eternals earned Rs 22.80 crore in India, while Rajinikanth’s Annaatthe stands at a worldwide total of Rs 146.53 crore. Trade analyst Taran Adarsh says, “The charm of the big screen can never fade. Collectively all films have done well. The fear that people won’t return to the movies has been dispelled.”

Manoj Desai, chief executive director of Gaiety-Galaxy, is jubilant that the cinema shutdown has been followed by such an overwhelming opening. “Ever since Sooryavanshi was released, all my shows have been housefull [at 50 per cent seating]. [Going forward], all the big films should be released back-to-back to keep the shows going.”