A few days ago, Telugu film producer Suryadevara Naga Vamsi created quite a stir across the Hindi film industry, as he said that Bollywood is only making movies for Juhu and Bandra. He meant that the Hindi film industry is only making movies that are catering to a certain niche multiplex audience and not catering to the the masses, people who go to single screens and the two-tier, three tier cities. This statement of Vamsi has created a bit of a controversy and many directors and producers of Bollywood have slammed him. ETimes speaks to some exhibitors, distributors, producers to shed light on it. Let’s dissect!
Is Bollywood largely catering to the classes?
While Naga Vamsi’s statement may have stemmed from the recent success of ‘Pushpa 2‘ which did more numbers in the Hindi market than Telugu, it also is true that there have been very few Hindi films which have managed to attract the masses. Manoj Desai, Executive Director, Gaiety, Galaxy and Maratha Mandir cinemas, says, “I don’t know what has happened to producers and directors. Bohot Dukh ki baat hai ke Bollywood mein hote huye bhi hum Bollywood ki picture nahi chala paa rahe hai. (It’s sad that we are not able to run many Bollywood films in our cinemas lately despite belonging here). They are not bothered about the story, dialogues, music. Earlier, we used to have good content like Manmohan Desai, Prakash Mehra, Yash Chopra. Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge main chalaa raha hoon itne saalon se chal rahi hai because it has good content, dialogues, good songs.
He further added, “Pushpa 2′ broke records as the movie ran in 6 theatres and 18 shows on day 1 and still the shows were housefull. My managing director Mr Arun Nahar and me, have kept the rates as Rs 130, Rs 150. Instead of keeping theatres empty, we keep the rates low. Otherwise for most Bollywood movies, the theatres are running empty.”
Distributor and analyst, Raj Bhansal says, “I don’t agree of what he said, Mumbai producers do not make film from Bandra to Andheri or whatever he said. Unfortunately, they are ignoring good scripts and good music. That is the Bombay film industry. Bombay film industry unfortunately is failing because of the good content and good music.”
He further added, “There are so many films. I can name you 50 films which are massy. There may be few films, may be 10 films or 15 films, what he is mentioning, they are meant to be for OTT and other platforms.”
Producer Shariq Patel says, “Now people have been saying this since the last 5-7years, He’s repeating things which have been said by multiple people. I think maybe there was a time when we got like, let’s make intelligent cinema, let’s make cinema for people with brain people who are sensible in terms of coherent story telling. It’s basically saying let’s appease a certain number of critics who typically trashed massy movies. So I think somewhere there is this big divide between what the consumers want as entertainment and what the critics like.”
Girish Wankhede, trade analyst, opines, “Critiquing Bollywood should not devolve into blanket statements that dismiss the hard work and creativity of many artists. Instead, it should encourage constructive dialogue that fosters growth and innovation within the industry. By acknowledging the contributions of various filmmakers and respecting their creative endeavors, we can cultivate a more inclusive and supportive environment for storytelling in Indian cinema.”
Wankhede points out, “The recent spate of box office failures, including films like “Fighter,” “Badem iya Chhote Miya,” and “Chandu Champion,” serves as a reminder that success in the film industry is not guaranteed, regardless of the filmmaker’s pedigree or past achievements. These failures highlight the importance of storytelling and audience engagement over mere star power or marketing. It is crucial to recognize that a few unsuccessful films do not define the entire industry or the capabilities of its filmmakers.”
Comparisons to south
Bhansal added, “But for theatrical, even the producers of Bombay knows what kind of cinema they should make for commercial audience. So this is rubbish if he talks that way. But then what is that one thing we should do some rethinking about, you know, why do we give an opportunity for people to say something like that? What should we do? Because Bombay is failing in the content, so if you compare Bombay films to South, South is coming out with brilliant scripts and content, whereas Bombay producers are failing in getting good content because they are focusing more on these new writers.”
However, film trade analyst, Ramesh Bala says, “Yes. Most of the film makers are targeting urban multiplex audience. They need to focus on Hindi heartland. UP, Bihar. They need to make Mass Masala Entertainers like KGF, Pushpa and more.”
Film-maker Jaideep Sen says, “He’s Absolutely Right ✅ This is what even Mr.Allu Arvind had recently cautioned Mumbai about. Mr.Mithun Chakraborty had Years before taught us this Priceless Lesson that Films are made Successful by the Poor & they reside beyond the Plush Areas of the Metropolitans. They are the One’s who stand in long queues in the hot sun to buy Movie Tickets,not the Rich. The Unfailing Formula to make a Super Hit 🎯 is देसी आत्मा को विदेशी पहनावा देना which means Mass Content packaged with Visual Finesse (which is the sign of Upgrade), the Best Example & Reference point according to me in recent times being DABANGG 1”
Exaggerated statement or truth – that’s a debate
Exhibitor-Distributor Akshaye Rathi says, “I think that statement was a bit too exaggerated to be true, because good and bad films, and flop films, massy films, multiplex films are being made in India as well as down south. And even in the south, the nuances of Telugu cinema are very different from the nuances of Malayalam cinema, which are in turn very different from Tamil cinema, and all kinds of films are being made. I mean, if there is a Baahubali in an RRR that comes out of Andhra, Telangana, there’s also a Manjummel Boys that comes out of there, there’s also a stereotypical Karthik Subbaraj film that comes out of there.”
He further added, “I don’t think, you know, Allu Arjun saying that Mr. Amitabh Bachchan is my favorite star and inspiration got as much news and buzz and, you know, chatter around it as Naga Vamsi saying this about Hindi cinema did. And look at the proportion of amplification, it’s unfortunate. It’s only a matter of news is sensationalist being picked up and overhyped, in my belief. I truly think that it’s not a statement that deserves as much attention as it’s got. It’s only getting it because it’s sensationalist and it’s controversial and slightly negative in terms of its connotations.”
Rathi further puts his stand and says, “So there’s all kinds of cinema that’s made everywhere. And even in Hindi, we have had a Padmavat, we have had a Dangal, we have had a Sultan, we have had a Ek Tha Tiger, Tiger Zinda Hai, so many massy blockbusters have happened, like every Rohit Shetty film out there, every Farah Khan film out there. So we do all kinds of cinema as well, as we should.”
Post-lockdown scenario
However, it cannot be denied that during the lockdown and post that, due to the rise of OTT platforms and the exposure to cinema across the world, even Hindi movies are slowly moving towards the west and trying to cater to an intelligent audience. However, Rathi opines that catering to the upper class audience is pointless as they are spoilt for choice and have many options. He says, “I don’t think now the time has come to start catering to the masses or anything. If you look at the demographics and psychographics of India, we are a volume market, we aren’t the value market. And we really need to realize that the larger chunk of the Indian population, in fact, the biggest chunk of it is people who, you know, don’t really go to cinema to appreciate the art of it, but go to the theatres for escapism. And that’s exactly why the numbers of a Rohit Shetty film, however bad it may be, the numbers of the worst Rohit Shetty films will be far bigger than the numbers of the best film that, let’s say, a Kiran Rao has made, or a Vasant Bala has made. It’s because these films just cater to the widest possible socioeconomic spectrum. The wider the net we cast, the more fish we’ll catch.”
The larger issue!
Producer Shariq Patel opines, “The other bigger problem, that we have f*cked up our own ecosystem. Where is the money coming from? Money is coming from the multiplexes, especially in the largest cities, Bombay, Delhi, which contribute maximum 50% comes from Bombay Delhi Circuit. Now that the pricing has gone through the roof. So the common man is not even entering into any of these fancy halls. Even in Mulund, the average ticket price is Rs 300. So where is the, where is the average middle class going to come? Other than Maratha Mandir or Gaeity Galaxy, there are no single screens only. There’s just no place for them.”
He added, “The economics have shifted in such a crazy way that you’re saying, hey, if maximum money is coming from here, the commerce has got f*ked up. Whereas in South there’s enough single screen, there’s a price cap in, you can’t go more than a certain price of the thing, no matter what kind of call is there. So you’re getting larger, you’re creating movies where the middle class can also are also participating.”
The need for change
Akshay Rathi added, “There is realization of the fact that the multiplexing audience, the audience that goes to a gold class is just spoiled for choice. And for recreation on a weekend, they can go out for a meal, they can go out for a play, they can go out for a show, they can go out for a concert, they can sit at home and watch something on Netflix, they can head off to Lonavala, they can go take their children to Adelaide, to Imagica, or they can choose to go to a theatre. If you go to a tier two town or you go to, you know, you reach out to the common man of India, they don’t have as many avenues of recreation that are palatable to them. It’s a good, fun, entertaining, escapist movie that becomes their outdoor recreation.”
Bhansal though thinks that the mature producers are catering to the masses – thus, giving instances of movies like ‘Stree 2’, ‘Tiger 3’, ‘Pathaan’ and more.
Manoj Desai adds, “Now there are no songs in Bollywood. People should understand that their biggest competition is OTT. But the main directors have just taken a backseat now. Usse kya hone wala hai? Ultimately masses only watch a movie and make it a success. In Roti Kapda Makan, Rajesh Khanna had a dialogue which said, ‘yeh public hai sab jaanti hai’. When people come out of the film, they watched a movie. Now people hear reviews and say OTT pe dekhenge. Bollywood should think how they can complete with Tamil, Telugu movies.”
Akshaye concludes, “Do we want to really focus on the audience that is extremely disloyal and very spoiled for choice? Or do we want to cater to an audience that is starved for entertainment and recreation, which we haven’t given them in very many years as an industry? And the day we have that answer, I think we’ll do very well.”
Wankhede says, “In conclusion, while Naga Vamsi’s comments may stem from a place of frustration, they inadvertently highlight the need for a more nuanced understanding of Bollywood. The industry is a dynamic and evolving landscape, characterized by both successes and failures. It is essential to celebrate the diversity of voices and stories within Bollywood rather than reducing it to a simplistic narrative based on a few films. By doing so, we honor the creativity and dedication of all filmmakers, promoting a culture of respect and appreciation for the art of cinema.”
This post was originally published on here
