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| MOVIE #1: Crowds throng a screening
of Chandramukhi that has so far grossed Rs 60 crore |
Thus far in 2005, Bollywood's biggest
hit has been Bunty aur Babli, which grossed Rs 50.59 crore. However,
that isn't the biggest blockbuster of the year. That distinction
will have to go to a Tamil motion pic called Chandramukhi starring
(who else?) Rajnikant that has thus far grossed around Rs 60 crore.
Four years ago, everyone thought the Kollywood (as the industry
is widely known) story was over: the number of releases had dwindled
from around 130 to less than 80; theatres were forced to close
down; and rampant video piracy and a steep entertainment tax of
35 per cent were clearly taking their toll. Over the past year-and-a-half,
though, the Tamil Nadu government has started prosecuting video
pirates under the Goondas Act, and reduced entertainment tax rates
to around 10 per cent. This year has seen some eight hits out
of 70 releases and, more significantly, the industry seems on
its way to becoming organised (even corporatised). "While
there have always been professionally run production houses like
AVM, Kavithalaya and Oscar Films, there are at least 15 others
that are becoming more organised in the way they do their business,"
says V. Natarajan, Chairman, Pyramid Saimira Theatre, himself
a producer. That should help the cause of an industry that, according
to some Bollywood execs, has always been at the forefront of film
making in India in terms of technical virtuosity, and its willingness
to experiment with new and alternative themes.
The story of Telugu cinema is quite similar to that of Tamil's.
The number of releases has grown to over 100 a year now, as compared
to around 70 four years ago. Of this number, 15 per cent are hits
while another 10 per cent manage to more than recover their costs.
Speed and professionalism seem to be this year's themes for the
industry: it takes between three and four months to complete a
project as compared to around 12 months in Bollywood.
Budgets for both Tamil and Telugu motion pics have soared over
the years, with some costing even as much as Rs 30 crore. Much
of that has to do with the fact that markets for both exist outside
India, in the US, Europe, West and South-East Asia, even South
Africa. Some estimates say revenues from these markets account
for as much as 15-20 per cent of the total takings of some movies.
For instance, the US rights for Telugu movie Jai Chiranjeevi,
still in the works, have been snapped up for Rs 1 crore, 7 per
cent of the film's production cost. Over the past 12 months, Telugu
cinema has seen some big hits, including Shankar Dada MBBS (a
remake of Hindi film Munnabhai MBBS, it grossed Rs 30 crore on
a budget of Rs 15 crore; the original itself made Rs 27 crore)
and Mass (made on a budget of about Rs 13 crore, it raked in over
Rs 20 crore). Considering that both the Tamil and Telugu film
industries have smaller markets than Bollywood, these numbers
are definitely impressive.
-with reports from Ahona Ghosh
in Mumbai, E. Kumar Sharma in Hyderabad and
Nitya Varadarajan in Chennai
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