Once upon a time Indian cinema could rest secure in the loyalty of its large domestic base. Even if Indian audiences didn’t always like local movies, they were unlikely to defect to American (or other foreign) movies. However, this is all changing, as Hollywood sets its sights on the domestic Indian movie market:
… only a few years ago, Hollywood films warranted only about 100 prints, and if there were dubbed versions, they were often released after the English-language version finished its run. The tactic made most Indian moviegoers feel like second-class citizens …The turning point, experts say, was last year, when some 400 prints of the James Bond film “Casino Royale” were released in India - including three versions in Hindi, Tamil, and Telugu - simultaneously with the global debut. [Link]
In 2005, foreign films had only around 5% of the $1 billion dollars in theater tickets sold in India each year. However, Hollywood profits are now growing at 35% per year as they aggressively roll out dubbed movies as part of a global release. Despite Bollywood’s size (more people buy tickets to Bollywood films than Hollywood ones, world wide), it doesn’t have Hollywood’s deep pockets:
Movie tickets in many part of India cost $1, meaning Bollywood’s global revenues are about 2 percent of Hollywood’s, says Mr. Bose. “Hollywood can spend 8 percent of its normal marketing budget for a film and get the same amount of exposure as a top Hindi film,” says Sanjay Ram of BusinessofCinema.com in Mumbai.
The most lavish Bollywood films rarely cost more than $10 million. “Spider-Man 3” is thought to have cost $260 million. [Link]
The new release of Spiderman3 has local moguls scared:
The film opened to Rs 19.17 crore on it’s opening weekend in India, making it a likely contender for the highest earning film of 2007 — Indian or otherwise. [Link]“Spider-Man 3” has already been blamed for taking the momentum from one of the few major Hindi releases this year, “Ta Ra Rum Pum” (“Don’t Worry, Be Happy”). [Link]
Sequels to “Shrek”, “Pirates of the Caribbean” and “Harry Potter” are all also due out later this summer.
If you’re an optimist, you believe that all this competition will produce innovation in the stagnant Bollywood film industry. If you’re a pessimist, you think it’ll just lead to more poor Hollywood imitations, like Krrish. Either way, it’ll be a bumpy ride for Bollywood over the next few years as they realize they’re no longer the only game in town.
BTW, this is what I wish the dubbed versions were like:Related Posts: Spiderman 3, Officially Released in Bhojpuri
