Tollywood is staring at a plethora of issues like content, OTT releases, wage hikes for workers, production costs, ticket prices, the role of managers, etc.
Published Jul 25, 2022 | 10:13 AM ⚊ Updated Jul 30, 2022 | 12:49 PM
A cinematographer handling camera during a film shooting. (Creative Commons)
The Telugu film industry is going through one of its toughest phases.
On one hand, the producers are still recovering from the losses that Covid-19 and its after-effects have brought upon them. On the other, most of the films are failing to rake in the moolah at the box office.
Since January this year, there have hardly been any blockbuster hits. RRR and DJ Tillu are the only movies that had set the cash registers ringing.
Films like Bangarraju, Bheemla Nayak, Radhe Shyam, Acharya, Sarkaaru Vaari Paata, The Warrior, F3, and Pakka Commercial featured A-list actors from Tollywood. But all these films ended up as box-office duds.
The run-of-the-mill stories, tested-and-tried formulas, bad content, and routine commercial elements have failed to appeal to the viewers. Neither the “star” cast nor the promotional activities are doing any wonders.
“We are falling short of content-based movies. But that is what people are seeking today,” producer Abhishek Agarwal told South First. He bankrolled films like The Kashmir Files, Raja Raja Chora and A1 Express, among others.
A film shooting site in Rajahmundry, Andhra Pradesh. (Facebook/AlwaysRamCharan)
Daggubati Suresh Babu, one of the top producers in the Telugu film industry, chimes in: “Undoubtedly, directors and heroes are the faces of a project. However, due to the poor content that they’re delivering, the audience these days don’t find film-watching an exciting experience.”
Needless to say, when a film is devoid of content that can draw the audience to theatres, the producer ultimately incurs a huge loss.
It may be worth mentioning here that the producers need at least two blockbuster hits to recover from these losses. But alas, “success” in tinsel town is a huge gamble!
The hefty remunerations of actors and top technicians like directors and music composers are eating away most of the budget, especially the big-budget releases.
It’s no secret that the A-listers, of late, are seeking distribution rights of their films, or a share in the profits. This, in turn, is becoming burdensome for the producers.
Meanwhile, the fact that every movie is being released on Over-The-Top (OTT) platforms, almost a month after its theatrical release, is discouraging people from stepping out for the big-screen experience.
Actor Mahesh Babu getting touchup during a film shooting (Facebook/urstrulyMahesh)
“The OTTs have become a huge cause of concern for us of late. Within a few days/weeks of hitting the big screens, every film is released on the OTT platforms,” said Agarwal.
“Since these OTTs are available for a yearly subscription for ₹500 or so, the entire family is watching the movie, sitting prettily at home. Ultimately, we producers are losing everything,” he pointed out.
Further, with almost every new release failing to meet their expectations, the audience has stopped visiting the cinema halls. The soaring ticket prices and other expenses are also burning a hole in their pockets.
“Since the ticket prices have also gone up, cinema is not a pocket-friendly affair for the common man anymore. Hence, the viewers have become choosy,” Suresh Babu pointed out.
Only diehard fans of the major actors are turning up at cinema halls in the initial days of release, out of their love for their idols.
The result: There’s hardly any rush at theatres nowadays.
And that was an wonderful MASSive treat for all the Mass Maharaja Fans??
Team #RamaRaoOnDuty signing off in style from the Pre Release Event.
▶️ https://t.co/T1Dyhj32AM#RamaRaoOnDutyOnJuly29 pic.twitter.com/ktcddKcRGW
— RT Team Works ON DUTY (@RTTeamWorks) July 24, 2022
Over 20,000 Telugu cinema workers staged a flash strike on 22 June. They demanded a 45-percent hike in wages and clearance of pending dues, among other things.
However, the strike was called off after the Telugu Film Chamber of Commerce agreed to look into their demands.
Reacting to this, Agarwal said: “Be it remuneration or the cost of production, a collective decision by actors, technicians and crew needs to be taken to make filmmaking ‘safe’ for every stakeholder, especially producers.”
Undoubtedly, the industry is going through one of its toughest phases. And, it is high time that things changed.
“We are working on all these issues. Sooner or later, we’ll come up with affable solutions to the existing problems. We’ll also take necessary steps to set things right,” Suresh Babu told South First.
#HIT2 will come with a BANG!
But at the right time ?#FinalSchedule Next Month pic.twitter.com/KbljRmx386
— Adivi Sesh (@AdiviSesh) July 23, 2022
It is against this background that the Active Telugu Film Producers’ Guild decided to halt shootings from 1 August.
Responding to the move, producer-distributor Dil Raju admitted that a lot of issues are staring right in the face of the Telugu film industry now.
“The guild’s decision to halt shootings came after a lot of thought. Our objective is to discuss major issues like content, OTT releases, wage hikes of workers, production costs, VPF charges, ticket prices, the role of managers, etc.,” he told media men on Wednesday, 20 July.
According to producer C Kalyan, the Telugu Film Producers’ Council would take a call on continuing or halting the shootings of ongoing/new films, in a meeting to be held on 23 July. However, the decision is pending yet.
Team #SitaRamam at the Trailer Launch Event ??#SitaRamamTrailer ▶️ https://t.co/RZcL9LLqk3@dulQuer @mrunal0801 @iamRashmika @iSumanth @AshwiniDuttCh @hanurpudi @Composer_Vishal @VyjayanthiFilms @SwapnaCinema @SonyMusicSouth #SitaRamamOnAug5 pic.twitter.com/NmGIoExnGn
— Telugu Film Producers Council (@tfpcin) July 25, 2022
Appeal from exhibitors, distributors
At a meeting on Monday, 25 July, the Telugu Film Chamber of Commerce passed a few resolutions on the ongoing issues being faced by exhibitors and distributors. Here’s a lowdown on the issues discussed and the resolutions taken:
• We have no objections to selling tickets at the prices fixed by the Andhra Pradesh government.
• The hefty canteen prices in multiplexes, as against single-screen theatres, are discouraging the audience.
• The occupancy rate in theatres is quite low due to early release on OTT platforms.
• Even high-budget films like RRR, Pushpa-The Rise and Acharya failed to draw crowds to the theatres.
• Hence, big-budget movies should be allowed released on digital platforms eight weeks after theatrical release.
• Medium and small-budget films should be released on OTTs four weeks after theatrical release.
• Production companies should pay the digital charges on the lines of Bollywood since they are high in the Telugu film industry.
• The producers should bear the virtual print fee (VPF) charges (₹12,500 in the state).
• Only heroes (stars) are getting benefited from the fake collection records being declared by the producers (check the below video in the tweet posted by AndhraBoxOffice.com). It’s high time to end this trend.
Chamber secretary Mutyala Ramesh and exhibitors sector chairman TS Ram Prasad told the media that these resolutions will be forwarded to the council in Hyderabad.
Telugu Film Chamber of Commerce Secretary Mutyala Ramesh :
Only Hero’s are happy with their high remunerations and fake collections. All Other Stakeholders are suffering. ( In the Telugu Film Industry) pic.twitter.com/CkSISUHIHA
— AndhraBoxOffice.Com (@AndhraBoxOffice) July 25, 2022
In a similar meeting held in Hyderabad on Monday, 26 July, the producers and distributors decided to form a special committee to look into the problems in the industry.
According to producer Kalyan, all the producers and distributors elicited their opinions on the OTT releases. They also discussed the terms and conditions to float the panel, the number of members to be selected and the issues to be taken into consideration.
However, the council is yet to arrive at a decision on halting the shootings of new films from 1 August. It would take a resolution based on the committee report.
