Movies are probably one of the most widely accepted forms of entertainment media. But a movie is not just a piece of mass entertainer, it is the end-result of the hard work and sacrifices of a lot of people; it’s an economic product, too. The artists and technicians aim at meeting the expectations of the public who have a variety of choices and preferences even on entertainment. A tough task that must be compensated when performed, right?
But things get difficult for directors when their movies are washed out of the theatres. For all wrong reasons. Rohit V.S, director of the recently-released Adventures of Omanakutan has spilled the beans of disappointment stating that anyone who wants to watch the movie should do it as soon as possible because the movie will not survive in the theatres for many days.
The various situations that have persuaded the director to in a way underrate his own movie through a Facebook post has triggered a series of revelations by many other directors and actors of Malayalam film industry. We talk to some of them to know their views on the same.
Basil Joseph, director of Godha that was released on the same day as of Adventures of Omanakutan has come forward in support of his friend and director Rohit and through his Facebook page has urged people to go and watch the movie and support its makers and to acknowledge the efforts they put behind it. “My movie did not have to face the same plight only because I was not a debutant,” he told DC. Even then we had many issues. The people behind a movie know the efforts that have gone into its making.
“After delaying the release of the movie by one week to avoid clashes with other mega movie, we did not even get the required number of screens to release Godha. Moreover, the pirated prints of the movie were also circulating from the very next day. That Malayalam movies get no preferential treatment in Kerala is another major issue that we face,” he added.
Asked if blockbusters like Baahubali are hurting small films, Basil says that blaming Baahubali will not address the issue and that regulations on non-Malayalam movies irrespective of how big the movie is can solve the problem to an extent. He is also of the opinion that online publicity is not enough to make the audiences feel that they should go and watch it.
Senior actor Joy Mathew blamed the government and movie associations for this situation. “The government should increase the tax on other language movies and bring it down for Malayalam movies,” he said. “If done so the tickets will cost less and people will be persuaded to watch Malayalam movies. People have shifted from small shops to hypermarkets for provision shopping. This is an indication that public wants everything in an improvised way. This is applicable to cinema as well. Content of the movies should force people to come to theatres.”
Parthan Mohan, director of the Malayalam movie One shared a similar incident. He says that he very well connects with the emotions of a debutant director who releases a movie on experimental basis, which is being kicked out of the theatres just because of a group of people who do not want to give newcomers a chance. “Theatre owners are also to be blamed for this. They are not even interested in giving space to these small movies, which in turn leads to the unfortunate plight of such movies where they have to exit from the cinema halls in a few days,” he added.
Lead actor of the movie Asif Ali also through his Facebook page has written on the plight of his recent movie saying that it feels disappointing when a movie is washed away from the theatres because of improper distribution methods and because not enough screens are available to release it. He has added that the movie has received good feedback and that a movie leaving the theatres for not being bad is heartbreaking.
Whether the presence of blockbuster movies or poor distribution techniques used to promote regional movies, the fact of the matter is that some movies are not even getting screens to be released. This situation definitely requires an immediate solution.
