Entertainment -No Diwali dhamaka from Bollywood

Amit Sharma

NEW DELHI: Diwali may not bring much cheer to Bollywood this year. Blame it on lack of aggression by filmmakers recovering from a series of flops anMore Pictures
d low consumer confidence stemming from economic uncertainties. Just a week away from India’s biggest festival, and the buzz around big-ticket Diwali releases is conspicuously missing, a stark contrast to last year when there was a battle-royale fought at the box office between two big-budget movies of 2007—Om Shanti Om and Saawariya.

Fashion and Golmaal Returns, this year’s Diwali’s releases, with a budget Rs 20 crore and Rs 30 crore, respectively, are comparatively smaller films than last year’s OSO and Saawariya, which had double the price tag at over Rs 35-40 crore, with big promotional budgets to boot.

What’s worse, industry observers are guarded in their predictions for the two Diwali releases this year. Says trade analyst Taran Adarsh: “Last year’s Diwali releases had big names attached with them. This year is an exception when the movies are not big.” Trade circles also admit that the smaller size of the films this year might impact their box office fortunes adversely.

In fact, after a series of flops this year, Bollywood is desperately seeking a hit this festive season. The latest, Karzzz, a remake of 1980s hit Karz, too seems to have failed to impress audiences, with thin attendance at theatres across Delhi and Mumbai. Ditto for the multi-starrer film Hello.

Says National Association of Motion Picture Exhibitors president and Delite Cinema MD Shashank Raizada: “In its opening weekend, Karzzz has got an occupancy of 55% across all theatres in Delhi. This is a below-par performance for the first three days that are expected to really draw in the crowds.”

The box office has recently witnessed a slew of flops, including big-budget movies like Saas Bahu Aur Sensex, Drona and Kidnap. Says PVR Cinemas COO (exhibition division) Amitabh Vardhan: “Both Karzzz and Hello have an occupancy of 25-30% in PVR Cinemas. And in both the cases, it is the content that is to be blamed. People are just not liking the fare on offer.”

Opines Fun Cinemas COO Vishal Kapur: “Occupancy for Hello and Karzzz have been 50% at our 62 cinemas, which is very mediocre. These days nothing can be predicted about any movie. It is only a matter of chance that two low-budget movies are releasing this Diwali.”

Mr Adarsh says that actor Himesh Reshammiya’s second outing, after Aap ka Suroor last year, has not gone down well with audiences in Mumbai too. What’s worse, industry observers are skeptical about the forthcoming movies. “Karzzz has got an overall occupancy of about 40% in all cinemas in the city. The market is unpredictable and nothing can be predicted about the fortunes of any film,” adds Mr Adarsh.

Mudra Max president Chandradeep Mitra feels that Fashion and Golmaal Returns might succeed if their content appeals to the audience.

“This year’s Diwali releases are smaller than last year. But conventional logic of having big stars and marketing budgets is taking a beating this year. It is better content that is winning. If you hype a weak product too much, it falls flat miserably. So a big budget might not guarantee a hit.”

Movies releasing in the month of November include the likes of Horn Ok Pleassss, Karan Johar’s Dostana and Subhash Ghai’s Yuvvraaj.