The lockdown has brought the entertainment industry to its knees. Producers and directors tell SHALINI SAKSENA that an industry bleeding hundreds of crores daily will take months to recover with present tense and future uncertain.
The year 2020 started on a low key but it had many good movies in store for the audience and the industry was looking for an excellent run. While movies like Tanhaji, Baaghi 3 and Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan that did good business, it was films like Angrezi Medium, Radhe, Laxmmi Bomb and Sooryavanshi that the audience was looking forward to. Then there was complete lockdown. While Angrezi Medium has since then been released on a OTT platform, the release dates of the other films hang in balance since there is no clarity when theatres will open.
According to producer Ajay Rai of JAR Pictures which has films like Gangs of Wasseypur and Luv Shuv Tey Chicken Khurana to its credit says that the biggest problem is the uncertainty when work will start and the fear associated with working in close proximity.
“Given the fear factor, it will take time for films to get back on track, he says. “There is so much fear and people are not going to throng theatres. Therefore, digital space is doing well for itself. This is the right time to look at such platforms to release movies. For a producer who has spent a year or so on a project, he needs to cover his cost. He may not be looking at a large profit margin. An OTT platform is an option. A movie in a hall is watched by five lakh people, on the OTT it is 50 lakh or even more. It is a win-win for small movies. For big budget movies it is a different ballgame,” Rai says.
The impact of the present lockdown is going to be felt till the end of the year. “Movies that were probably going for shoot in June-July will get pushed four-five months down the line. Also, producers are not going to put in Rs 200 crore in a project for now. They will wait and watch the situation,” Rai tells you.
Ram Kamal Mukherjee, who co-produced his first TV series Bin Kuch Kahe and directed a 45-minute feature — A Tribute To Rituparno Ghosh: Seasons Greetings says: “These are tough times for everyone. Our industry can’t work from home. It involves a very outdoor kind of work. Making cinema is a collective effort, we are definitely affected as are the daily wagers. But there are many actors who are helping to tie them over these testing times.”
The problem will be when things open. While the Government has pushed the taxes forward, the issues will be when the industry is asked to pay past dues. “Given that we have not earned a rupee, how will we pay these taxes with backlogs,” Mukherjee says.
For independent filmmakers like myself, it is a blessing that there are OTT platforms. But it is a sad situation for big filmmakers. “They are the kind of people who are sitting in a loop. They don’t know when their movies will release and if they release will people come to watch them as and when theatres open. Will people have enough money to watch movies if they have not been paid,” Mukherjee tells you.
Director Aditya Kripalani, who debuted with Tikli and his Laxmmi Bomb that was slated to release in May tells you that for writers like himself, the lockdown has not impacted him professionally he had taken a break to write around this time. “For other directors, they can’t shoot nor can they edit since they need a studio. All post-shoot work has to be done at home if possible. All that can be done is prep for the film. People who were in the before a film are in a good place since one can coordinate via video chats. But if one was shooting or is in post shoot production, those would be the people who would find it tough going,” Kripalani says. He is at present writing a film about a lady cinematographer.
He feels lucky that he is not in the same boat as others. Usually, he gets down to shooting every February. “This quarantine poses no difficulty for me. But yes, we just finished the shoot for a film two months back and it is in post-production stage. Till we lock the edit, we are in a good place. But after that, we will need to colour grade and will need a studio,” Kripalani says.
Like every other producer and director, the most important question to tackle would be way ahead once shoots start. “How do you ensure the safety of the actors? All the crew goes back home at the end of the day. Even if we go for outstation shoots, one has to get everyone tested for COVID-19. The crew has to stay in a hotel where they will come in contact with hotel staff who will go back home and may bring back the virus. The only way to control would be to hire a place and run it to ensure safety,” Kripalani tells you.
More than the logistics that surround the shooting, Kripalani opines will be the logistics for the people to go theatres. “The theatre industry is hit the hardest. People will need to have the confidence to sit in a hall and not be bothered by a cough or a sneeze. Resuming shooting and watching a film in a hall will take a long time,” Kripalani says.
Kamal Gainchandani, CEO, PVR Pictures tell you that it is a crisis that no one expected when 2020 began. “We had not anticipated this when the year began. The Government has acted in a decisive and timely manner and kept the numbers low. Now that the lockdown has been extended to May 3, 2020, we are hoping that cinemas, malls and public places will open by end May or beginning of June. We understand that customers will not go from total social distancing to zero social distancing immediately. There will be a transitionary phase. We as exhibitors will have to reassure our customers, make them feel safe and work extra hard to maintain hygiene and other aspects of social distancing,” Gainchandani says.
He tells you that PVRs have always maintained a high level of hygiene, safety and security. They will just have to work extra hard to maintain social distancing by advising their staff to maintain the distance with not just customers but with their colleagues too. “We will have to augment our efforts. We will advise our team and staff to maintain social distancing. People have more or less maintained social distancing by being at home during the lockdown. They understand the importance of doing the same. We also believe that people also have out-of-home need for entertainment in their lives and are itching to go out. Our natural grain is to be social. People would like to go out and yet be safe. We will be able to deliver on this and come out with proper measures in place as per Government guidelines,” Gainchandani assures.
Things are no different for regional films. They could be worse off since many are made on smaller budget as compared to Bollywood. Co-producer Akshay Bardapurkar, whose Marathi venture AB Aani CD stars Amitabh Bachchan, tells you that the movie was set to release in over 100 cinemas across the State when cinemas shut. “I sold the rights of the movie on an OTT platform and it slated to release on May 7. We had hoped that the cinemas would open as well but this is not going to happen. People’s health is more important. Hence OTT is the way forward,” Bardapurkar says.
The problem that he sees that since people have got used to home entertainment, it will take them time to visit cinemas. “It will not before Diwali that people will feel safe enough. Take the example of James Bond’s No Time to Die. Its release has been postponed to November. This will hamper regional cinema financially. While there is hunger for content, people no longer want to binge watch,” Bardapurkar tells you.
It is not just the OTT platforms that the filmmakers will be looking at. “The regional film industry will now look at satellite space. Or they might split between OTT and satellite to recover their cost. This is going to be the new order for small regional film industry. Another option could be pay per click for movies to be released for international market. However, this is not likely to work for big budget films. Also, many films are made for big screen. One will lose out on experiential viewing. Can one really enjoy watching Bahubali on mobiles,” he asks? Bardapurkar will now look for options that will protect him including his next big project Chandramukhi.
Siddharth P Malhotra, director of films like Hichki tells you that it is not just going to be a changed Bollywood but every one of us would have changed post opening of the lockdown.
“It is will be pre-COVID-19 and post. The amount of introspection that we are doing, we will not be the same. Every person will evolve. But people will continue to want entertainment and shootings will start. But in a more controlled way. This is the right time for producers and creators to create content so that when there is need to fire, there is no lack of ammunition,” Malhotra says.
He describes a typical day on the sets. People spit and leave chewing gum all over the place. There is no concept of social distancing. They touch every equipment with no gloves. Nobody wears masks. Food is cooked in a certain way. “All this will change. The 100-men crew will be reduced. Only those will be allowed who are needed. This will continue till there is a cure out there. Even if there are no more cases, anyone can get it again and become patient zero and the cycle will start again. There has to be cure out there for the fear to go down and things to normalise. We are looking at very strict guidelines when shoots start,” Malhotra tells you. He also says that it will be tough to convince distributors to buy the movie.
What he doesn’t see is a problem when it comes to movies to be released at the international market which can happen a few months down the line. One is told that while international market gives a certain revenue but the majority. One can stagger one’s release.
Then there is the whole challenge of completing movies that were being shot in foreign locations. A large number of foreign countries offer huge subsidies for films to be shot at various locations in their countries. Producer Ravi Bhagchandka says it might be difficult, if not impossible, for some time to come.
“I find it very hard to imagine that any producer would invest in taking a crew abroad when there are likely to be major impediments to travelling internationally. Not just that, the fear of the virus still being active in different parts of the world is a concern that most producers are likely to have till a cure is found for the Coronavirus,” Bhagchandka says. During the making of the documentary, Sachin: A Billion Dreams, he had travelled the world to put the film together. He was also mulling foreign locales for a number of his projects that are in the development stage. It has been put on hold. Bhagchandka is at present, developing the Hindi adaptation to George McCutcheon’s 1902 book, Brewster’s Millions.
Pradeep Kumar of Shaika Films, who made his debut as a film producer with Bamfaad, starring Paresh Rawal’s son, Aditya Rawal tells you that in order to understand there is need to look at things from three points.
“The entertainment industry is divided into three – TV, films and digital space. Films and theatres are hit the hardest. People will be scared to go and watch a film in theatres even if they open. I don’t’ think that makers will release films before September or October. In all this mess, the people most impacted are daily wagers,” Kumar says. He along with his wife are producers of Choti Sarrdaarni on Colors as well.
He tells you that show makers depend on the broadcasters who in turn depend on sponsors. Since the GDP has been affected, companies will need to revisit their budget. “If they were paying Rs 100, now they will give Rs 50. Coronavirus has changed the world. The lockdown has affected the globe. We don’t know where we will stand once the lockdown opens. There will be almost no takers for films for the time being. However, TV and digital space will limp back since the audience for these two will remain. Even at home, people will want entertainment,” Kumar says.