It was recently announced that the critically acclaimed Tamil film Soorarai Pottru, which featured South star Suriya, will be remade in Hindi. The Tamil movie, which was released in November 2020 on a digital platform, was inspired by the life of Captain G R Gopinath, founder of Air Deccan and pioneer of low-cost aviation in India. Now, BT has learnt that the Madras High Court has directed a stay on the recently announced Hindi remake. An injunction restraining Suriya’s 2D Entertainment from exploiting the Hindi rights of the film based on the book Simply Fly — A Deccan Odyssey authored by Captain G R Gopinath has been issued.

The original film in Tamil was made by Guneet Monga’s Sikhya Entertainment and Suriya’s 2D Entertainment. Sikhya Entertainment had approached the Madras High Court against the latter over the rights of the film, including the remake in Hindi. Earlier this month, Abundantia Entertainment, known for backing prominent films like Sherni, Shakuntala Devi, Airlift and Toilet - Ek Prem Katha, had announced that they would be collaborating with 2D Entertainment for the Hindi remake of Soorarai Pottru.

On probing why Sikhya Entertainment approached the Madras High Court, a source informed us, “Sikhya Entertainment and 2D Entertainment had made Soorarai Pottru together, and they were supposed to make the Hindi film together, too. However, apparently, 2D Entertainment selling the rights to Abundantia Entertainment without Sikhya’s consent and not fulfiling obligations under the original agreement between them led to Sikhya making the move.”

Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; June 17, 2020)

Among the most awaited Tamil offerings of the year is Suriya-starrer Soorarai Pottru, based on the life of Air Deccan founder and pioneer of low-cost aviation in India, G R Gopinath. Even as the film was being shot, rumours suggested that producers Suriya and Guneet Monga were keen on making it in Hindi as well. Now, it is learnt that the makers have approached Shahid Kapoor to play the lead.

A source says, "The film was always supposed to be made in multiple languages. Shahid enjoyed a mammoth hit in Kabir Singh last year, which was the Hindi adaptation of the Telugu blockbuster Arjun Reddy. So, he was the first choice of the makers. The actor is currently going through the script. After the leading man is locked, the team will zero in on the principal cast." If Kapoor gives his nod, it will be his third South remake after the upcoming Jersey.

mid-day reached out to Kapoor who did not respond until the time of going to press.

WILL BOLLYWOOD TALK THE OTT BAIT?

With theatres shut on account of Coronavirus pandemic, the film industry all over the world has taken a hit. Bollywood, too, is no exception. We have discussed in the past editions of Bollywood Talk about films that were to release in the months of March, April and May which got sadly pushed as theatres were ordered to be shut. Many of these films were fully ready. And it’s no surprise that the OTT giants have begun to eye these movies.

As we all know, right now, TV and streaming platforms are booming and have got record viewership since people are all locked down in their homes. Hence, they are consuming unusually high amount of content, which they wouldn’t have done if the situation was normal. The OTT platforms obviously are laughing all the way to the bank. But they too are concerned since after a point, they won’t have anything new to offer as even their productions have been halted. Hence, in order to keep the interest going, they have started approaching makers of all the films that were scheduled for release in the near future. One might expect that they’ll approach only filmmakers of smaller and medium-sized films. However, they have been sending feelers to producers of biggies as well. Thankfully, Reliance Entertainment, the producers of ’83 and Sooryavanshi, have refused to take the bait and are preferring to wait. Same with Salman Khan-starrer Radhe.

However, the industry and trade were left shocked as it came to light that Fox Star Studios, Akshay Kumar, Tusshar Kapoor and Shabinaa Khan are in advanced talks with Disney+ Hotstar for their film Laxmmi Bomb. It has Akshay in the lead and is one of the biggest and one of the most awaited films of 2020. It was to in fact clash with Radhe on Eid 2020. Hence, many were astonished that such a big film is opting for direct-to-digital release. There’s no confirmation on how much Disney+ Hotstar is offering them but it surely must be an excessive amount.

The Laxmmi Bomb makers haven’t still signed on the dotted line. However, the fact that they are in talks and that they haven’t denied the reports has led to anger and even concern among the exhibitors. The theatres have been shut since mid-March and are running into heavy losses. They don’t just have to pay salary employees but also bear the overhead costs. Also, once cinemas began, they’ll have to further invest in sanitation measures, which will further give them a financial blow. Hence, they are just hoping that more and more big films release so that they can earn profit. And Laxmmi Bomb is one such film which they were looking forward to big time. As a result, the speculations of it going on Disney+ Hotstar has naturally infuriated them. They are also worried that filmmakers of many smaller and mid-sized flicks might also follow suit, motivated by Laxmmi Bomb episode. That, in turn, will led to closure of some cinema halls and loss of jobs for it’s staff.

The scenario arose in the South as well but there, the exhibitors have much more power and have resorted to extreme measures. When it came to light that Ponmagal Vandhal, produced by Suriya’s wife Jyothika will come directly on Amazon Prime after it failed to release on March 27 as it scheduled, it led to a lot of brouhaha. The Tamil Nadu Theatre and Multiplex Owners’ Association have in fact threatened to ban films produced by or featuring Suriya if Ponmagal Vandhal directly arrives on OTT. It won’t be a surprise if our theatre owners also take a similar, drastic step.

Even as many films pursue OTT release, Sooryavanshi, 83 makers say they are 'willing to wait for six months' for a theatrical run; exhibitors hail move
Uma Ramasubramanian (MID-DAY; April 29, 2020)

Should we? Should we not? That's the question on the minds of several filmmakers who are contemplating releasing their offerings directly online as a cloud of uncertainty looms large over the re-opening of cinemas. However, Reliance Entertainment has decided to wait out the lockdown period instead of pursuing a direct-to-web release for their two big-ticket movies, Akshay Kumar's Sooryavanshi and Ranveer Singh's '83.

While he understands that OTT platforms enjoy a wide reach, Shibasish Sarkar, group CEO, Reliance Entertainment, says, "Sooryavanshi and 83 have been made for the big-screen experience. We are hoping theatres will open [in the near future], and we will be able to release our films. For now, we are willing to wait for four to six months [before considering an alternate course of action]." He doesn't deny that holding off a film's release for so long poses a financial risk. "We are taking a risk in terms of our equity and return. But we believe in our films and want to see them on the big screen. Also, theatres are an important part of the entertainment eco-system."

Exhibitor Akshaye Rathi opines that while smaller films can be web-bound, big-budget projects should not bypass a theatrical run as they are integral to the survival of cinemas. "Even 10 films [of the calibre of] Shubh Mangal Zyaada Saavdhan can't boost the exhibition sector the way a Sooryavanshi can. We depend on such films to keep our balance sheet in the green. Watching an Akshay Kumar or a Rajinikanth film on a mobile phone hardly gives viewers the larger-than-life theatre experience," he reasons.

Grateful that the key players are not biting the OTT bait, Manoj Desai, executive director, Gaiety-Galaxy, says, "Almost 50 per cent of my losses will be recovered if Sooryavanshi is the first release after the lockdown is lifted. If such films consider [a direct-to-web release], I will have to down the shutters of my theatres."

South Theatres Angry
Down south, multiplex owners are already resisting direct-to-home releases. The Tamil Nadu Theatre and Multiplex Owners’ Association has threatened to ban films produced by or featuring Suriya when his home production announced it will release wife Jyothika's Ponmagal Vandhal directly online. Following this, the association released a video warning that they will not allot screens to Suriya’s films if the couple goes ahead with the decision.

Pulling out all stops with her first big-budget movie based on Air Deccan founder, Oscar-winning producer Guneet Monga organises a grand song launch with Suriya in aircraft
Upala KBR (MID-DAY; February 20, 2020)

With the success of her independent ventures, producer Guneet Monga showed Bollywood that small can be beautiful. But, in what she considers natural progression, Monga — the champion of indie cinema in India — is steering towards big-budget films. The producer is backing the Tamil movie, Soorarai Pottru, which is based on the life of Air Deccan founder G R Gopinath and features superstar Suriya in the lead.

Interestingly, the makers recently hired an aircraft for the song launch. "We launched our first song mid-air, on an aircraft, three days ago. We took 100 underprivileged children for a ride on a Boeing 737 in Chennai," reveals Monga.

She adds that since the movie traces the life of the pioneer of low-cost aviation in India, large portions of the film have been shot inside real aircraft. Ask her why she chose to back a Tamil movie for her first big-budget project, and Monga says that plans are afoot for the Bollywood remake of the April release. "We procured the rights to tell [Gopinath's] story, developed the material and approached Suriya, who instantly came on board. Tamil and Telugu cinema are as huge as Bollywood. As this film nears release, I would love to make a Hindi version of it."

Natasha Coutinho (MUMBAI MIRROR; February 21, 2019)

Satish Kaushik, who owns the Hindi remake rights of the Vikram and Suriya-starrer 2003 Tamil hit Pithamagan, is gearing up to take the film to the floors in the next few months. The filmmaker, who is producing the project, is currently on the lookout for a new director to take charge of the project.

Pointing out that he had directed Tere Naam, a Hindi remake of another Tamil hit, Sethu, Satish says that he likes its director Bala’s work. Incidentally, Bala had also directed Pithamagan. “I bought the rights of the film as it is an unusual and hardhitting story. My hands are full of acting assignments at the moment, so I won’t direct it,” he explained.

Pithamagan’s story was based on Nandhavanathil Oru Andi, the story of an undertaker written by writer Jayakanthan. Vikram won the National Film Award for Best Actor for his role as one of the two protagonists. The film was dubbed in Telugu and released as Sivaputrudu in 2004 and was remade in Kannada as Anatharu in 2007. 

Subhash K Jha (DNA; April 9, 2014)

A few days ago, the internet was abuzz with rumours that Kareena Kapoor Khan is doing a sizzling item song with the Tamil superstar Suriya in his film Anjaan. The story, that went viral in no time, also had the film’s director Linguswamy being quoted as saying that this would be Kareena’s entry into Tamil cinema.

Reacting sharply to the story the actress says, “I don’t know where such baseless stories come from. I haven’t signed any such film. I don’t even know who Suriya and Linguswamy are. I’ve never seen them. I’ve zero interest in acting in non-Hindi films whether it is down South or in Hollywood.”

Kareena says it’s her career policy to not do films in a language she doesn’t speak or understand. “How can I emote in a language that I don’t know? I was offered beautiful scripts by the late Rituparno Ghosh in Bengali. I never could bring myself to work with this brilliant filmmaker because of the language barrier, and now he is gone.”

The actress says she has turned down some of the biggest South Indian films throughout her career. “I love the work that’s being done in South Indian languages as well as in Marathi and Bengali. But I’ll have to learn these languages to act in them.”

She also refutes any interest in doing item songs in any language. “Even in Gabbar, the number is a guest appearance and a romantic song. And I did it for my friend Shabinaa Khan who is the film’s co-producer.”