Fewer, leaner... better?

Corporate houses are tightening their purse strings after suffering huge losses in 2009. As a result, fewer films are being launched, budgets are being slashed, and there is a renewed focus on the importance of good content. What it means is that after the initial rush of releases in the first quarter of 2010, viewers may get fewer films to watch this year. But this may not be such a bad thing, writes DNA.

For the filmgoer, spending big bucks on a multiplex movie with the whole family is probably a weekly ritual. In 2009, the scene looked set for big, expensive films; lots of entertainment and value for money.

But what viewers had to deal with instead were disappointing films, hackneyed plots and poor content on most occasions. Whether 2010 will be better remains to be seen, but certain changes seem imminent.

Quantity over quality
At the beginning of 2009, the film industry was celebrating the success of Ghajini and Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi. Films like Chandni Chowk to China, Delhi 6 and Luck By Chance were expected to carry on the good work, with biggies like Kambakkht Ishq, London Dreams, Blue and Kurbaan set to nail the audiences later. But save a few, most of the big films fell like nine pins. So what went wrong? “There was too much emphasis on quantity in 2009. Corporate houses greenlighted too many films which eventually
jostled for space, and content suffered,” says Komal Nahta, editor of Film Information.

If that wasn't enough, the multiplex strike brought a dry spell for three months, April through June, leading to films
releasing in quick succession towards the end. The viewer was left with little choice but to be extra picky. Siddharth Roy Kapur of UTV Motion Pictures says the strike made films “cannibalise” each other's business, but admits that there was a “deficit of good
storytelling” too. Adds Shailendra Singh, managing director of Percept Films: “The consumer felt left out. The films were just not what audiences were looking for. No wonder the industry had such few hits last year.”

It’s obvious most filmmakers got their calculations wrong. Films with unreasonably high budgets and not good enough content to support the costs flopped, leaving the industry in the red.

“The crazy pricing acted as a deterrent,” says trade analyst Amod Mehra. “Films like De Dana Dan got off to a flying start and did decently, but ended up losing money only because they were made at too high a cost.”

Films like Love Aaj Kal, New York, Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahaani, Wanted and Three Idiots, which is still running in theatres, did good business, but were clearly the exceptions rather than the rule when you take into account the poor eight per cent success rate the industry enjoyed in 2009.

Lesser cost, bigger returns

Everyone expected a correction in film budgets in 2009, after recession hit in. But the big films had already been rolled out, inflated budgets, high star fees et al. Will things change this year? “The first few months of 2010 won't see much change. Films releasing in the first quarter are spillovers from last year's batch, and some are very highly priced. But you will see a marked difference in things in the latter part of 2010.

Corporates are already streamlining their budgets and launching fewer films as compared to 2009,” says Nahta. Sidharth Roy Kapur seconds this. “Cost models will be made more effective,” he says. “The fees of actors and directors soared, but revenues didn’t. But we can expect to see changes in 2010-end or 2011.”
Shailendra Singh believes that the economic relationship between actors and producers will need to change. “Ideally, we should be spending 70 per cent of our budgets on content and 30 per cent on actors. But it happens the other way round,” he adds.

Amod Mehra, however, is pessimistic about much change in budgets. “Let's not be too hopeful. The big stars will continue to charge astronomical fees. Ranbir Kapoor, who's only four films old, has already increased his price and frankly, there are many out there who will pay him too,” says Mehra.

Fewer films in 2010

With most production houses being cautious after facing losses, the number of films that release in 2010 will come down. “The Hindi film industry sees an average of 140-150 releases every year. That number may come down to around 110 in 2010,” says Nahta. Singh says his company will probably look at launching a maximum of five films this year, instead of the usual 8-10.

Producer Ramesh Taurani feels that most financiers will play the waiting game now and sanction big money for a film only when there are guaranteed returns. “2009 saw about 50-60 big-budget films releasing. The number will probably come down to 30, or even lesser, this year.”

Mehra says that though films with big stars may not face problems of finance, the smaller films will probably disappear. “You can expect to see fewer Bheja Frys this year. Even with all its publicity, Radio could not get anybody into the theatres. These films will find it difficult to get finance,” he adds. The other change this year will be films with lesser budgets. “Any film made with a budget of over Rs50 crore will not be economically viable. No new film launched will have an astronomical budget, at least not for some time,” says Mehra.

Singh says with most big actors having launched their own production houses, costs will come down. “Akshay Kumar, whose
market price is Rs40 crore, can produce a film for as little as Rs26 crore and keep all the profits. Shah Rukh Khan has been doing this for years and Saif Ali Khan did it with Love Aaj Kal recently. As far as films made by outside producers go, they can be
partners-in-profit with stars. This is probably how business will be conducted in the future,” he says.

The third change — and probably the most important one — will be better films. “The kaamchori of scripts won't work anymore; the writer has to gain more prominence in the scheme of things. Production houses will have to invest in only those films they believe have good content,” says Nahta.

As Kapur puts it, “At the end of the day, a well-made, commercial film with good content, right pricing and effective marketing will always do well.”

Sweet words to the ear but will they be put into action? Only 2010 will tell.