The Kollywood film trade is on the boil, as a war of words has erupted again between the producers and exhibitors in Chengalpet area. The conflict surfaced when leading producer and president of Tamil Film Producers Council (TFPC), Kalaipuli Thanu, refused to release his Vijay-starrer Theri on Tamil New Year day – April 14 – in nearly 60 screens in Chengalpet area. The biggie released only in select screens, mainly multiplexes, leaving out some of the most popular collection kings like Ambattur Rakki, Kancheepuram Babu and Chrompet Vettri.
Chengalpet, as this column mentioned a few weeks ago, has five of the top 10 collecting theatres in Tamil Nadu, with the highest footfall during a weekday in the country. It is also known as the collection citadel for star-driven movies in the state. Thanu refused to screen in these Chengalpet theatres because they were not willing to screen the film on Minimum Guarantee (MG) basis and on his terms and conditions. Till recently, big-hero films were screened only on MGs, but after every hit, the amount was raised by distributors, and finally the bubble burst, creating losses for some exhibitors.
A peeved Thanu said, “These theatre owners did not screen my earlier release Kanithan too, as they were not willing to even give me a token advance. Some vested interest is trying to cheat the producers out of their genuine share. A Vijay-starrer like Theri normally gets huge MGs and attractive terms and conditions. A theatre mafia controlled by middlemen and brokers is trying to take over the business.”
However, the president of the powerful Chengalpet Exhibitors Association, Panneerselvam, said, “Yes, once upon a time, we paid huge MGs and lost heavily. For the past two years, we have not been paying MGs, and for some select big-hero films, a few of us have given deposits. Here again, it is a risky business, as sometimes the total revenue recovered will be lower than the deposit amount, and exhibitors will have to run after the distributor/producer for years to recover it. In this case, producer Thanu asked us for unreasonable MGs and terms for Theri , which would have caused us total loss.”
As per trade sources, prior to the release of Theri , there was a crackdown on cinema theatres, especially in Chengalpet area, by tax department officials and the police, following complaints that they were selling tickets at higher prices than government-stipulated rates. The special team formed by the government to check overpricing of tickets had carried out raids in various theatres and found some discrepancies.
A Chengalpet distributor pointed out, “It is an open secret that from the 1990s, tickets for big-hero films in Chengalpet were sold in the opening weekend for four to five times the government-stipulated ticket rate for that particular theatre. This was in connivance with local government bodies, which looked the other way, leading to theatres competing with each other to pay attractive MGs. Nowhere else in India is MG, which is almost a sort of a gambling, as prevalent as in the Chengalpet area. Unfortunately, Theri’s release coincided with the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections, when the moral code of conduct was in force, and due to complaints from audiences, a huge crackdown was imitated by the authorities against those selling tickets above the normal rates. No theatre wanted to risk selling tickets at higher prices, as it would have led to suspension of the theatre licence. So, no theatre came forward to pay the high MGs for Theri, as they would not recover the amount at normal ticket rates.”
The battle for Chengalpet is also turning into shadow boxing between the traditional theatre owners controlled by the Chengalpet Exhibitors Association and multiplexes. There is a multiplex boom in the area, with a lot of national and regional players coming in; they sell tickets at government-stipulated rates and do not pay MGs or deposits. For example, a traditional theatre will share revenue on a 70 (distributor) - 30 (exhibitor) basis, while multiplexes will give a maximum of 55 per cent to the distributor in the first week.
Today, most of the traditional screens in Chengalpet, due to stiff competition, have upgraded, and are providing comfort that is as good as some of the multiplexes. Now, they want to be treated on par with multiplexes, especially in terms of revenue sharing. The veteran producers and distributors sitting in Chennai do not want this to happen, as it will amount to virtual stoppage of MGs and deposits. A theatre owner remarked, “Recently, I have spent a bomb on making my screens state-of-the-art and was hoping to cash in on Theri, which did not happen. I was willing to pay an MG for Vijay’s sake, but the producers asked me for more than what I paid in the case of Thuppakki and Kaththi . We are looking for an amicable settlement, as we want to screen the big summer releases 24 and Kabali .”
Tirupur Subramaniam, Coimbatore-based distributor and exhibitor, who is now said to be playing mediator between the warring factions, said, “The issue has been blown out of proportion due to fragile egos. The new government should bring about a change with a more practical and realistic approach to ticket pricing and other issues plaguing the trade.”
Now all eyes are on Gnanavel Raja, whose Suriya sci-fi thriller 24 is the next big summer release on May 6. Gnanavel Raja concludes, “I’m 100 per cent with Thanu sir in this Chengalpet issue, as I know the hardship a producer faces in releasing a biggie. I will give 24 to Chengalpet exhibitors only if they meet my terms and conditions.”