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India’s entertainment industry is relying on a solid lineup of local and Hollywood films to break free from the blockbuster “hunger” and bring people back to theaters after a string of failures.
India’s box office revenue from January to October was down 7% to 89.5 billion rupees ($1 billion) compared to the same period in 2023, according to Ormax Media.
However, the Mumbai-based consultancy says the strong performance of sequels and series such as the Hindi horror-comedy Bhool Bhooraiya 3 and the South Indian macho thriller Pushpa 2: The Rules will lead to a 2024 comparison. We hope that this will help reverse the poor performance.
Ajay Bijli, head of PVR Inox, India’s largest multiplex operator, said the next financial year starting in April would see a “full slate” of domestic and international productions, including the latest Mission Impossible and Marvel movies. spoke.
But Mumbai-based Bollywood has struggled with a string of recent Hindi flops as audiences stayed away from movie theaters in the wake of the pandemic.
Viewers are drawn to high-testosterone action films from the country’s south, especially those produced by the Telugu industry known as Tollywood.
Bijli said the industry’s problems revolve around “consistency of content that connects with viewers.” Studios and movie theaters suffered from “feast or famine.”
“Since COVID-19, the volatility, the peaks and troughs have become very noticeable,” Bijli said. “Content makers are addressing what consumers want.”
In response to changing tastes, Bollywood has pushed out extravagant productions that mirror some of the successful South Indian productions. Jawan, the highest-grossing film of 2023 starring the country’s biggest actor Shah Rukh Khan, was directed by South Indian director Arun Kumar, known professionally as Atlee.
Jio Studios, the Indian film company owned by Asia’s richest man Mukesh Ambani, has produced a string of hits this year, including the latest in the police action series “Singham Again,” which draws heavily from the Hindu epic Ramayana. There is. Jio’s horror-comedy Stree 2 was one of the highest-grossing Indian films of 2024.
Following a series of digital-only releases, more Indian studios are focusing on theatrical releases.
“For at least a few years, most of these (streaming) platforms have had snake carcasses around their necks and overpaid huge sums for their content,” said Jyoti, head of the media and content division of Mr. Ambani’s conglomerate Reliance. Deshpande, Chief and President, Jio Studios said. industry.
“I think a correction has happened,” she added. “Unless some platform has requested it in advance, it has to be carefully crafted and produced for theatrical (release).”
India’s box office revenue is currently expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate of 14% and reach Rs 237 billion by 2028, according to a PwC report published this month.
Jio Studios wants to expand globally and is eyeing deals with Hollywood. Deshpande said he wants US studios to collaborate more broadly on “a variety of tracks,” including co-production, distribution, superstar crossovers, and whether big-name American actors star in Indian productions or vice versa. He said that discussions are underway.
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“Our talent in their movies, and their talent in our movies…I think that’s the next step,” Deshpande said of the collaboration between Bollywood and Hollywood. “We haven’t scratched the tip of the iceberg.”
So far, only a few of India’s megastars, including Alia Bhatt, Priyanka Chopra Jonas and Deepika Padukone, have starred in big-budget American films. Chopra Jonas has appeared in Hollywood films such as 2021’s The Matrix Resurrections and the 2017 Baywatch movie remake. Bhatt made his Hollywood debut in the 2023 spy thriller Heart of Stone, while Padukone starred in the 2017 Vin Diesel vehicle xXx: Return of Xander Cage.
Deshpande predicted that India’s fragmented entertainment industry would enter a period of consolidation.
In October, India’s vaccine billionaire Adar Poonawalla made his first foray into the film business. He spent $199 million to hire powerful Bollywood director Karan, who has helmed blockbusters such as the romantic comedy “Kuch Kuch Hota Hai” and the family melodrama “Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Ghum.” It purchased 50% of Dzhokhar’s studio, Dharma Productions.
“It’s going to be survival of the fittest,” Deshpande said. “It’s going to be a big game for the boys.”
