Category: Hindi

MUMBAI: The Salman Khan starrer Dabangg has registered a record breaking score on awareness two weeks ahead of release, according to Ormax Media‘s film awareness tracking product Cinematix.

As per its latest report, with an unaided awareness of 50 per cent, Dabangg may have a bumper opening on the box-office.

Cinematix track is conducted across the key theatrical revenue markets – Mumbai, Delhi, Ahmedabad, Lucknow and Indore. Cinematix covers theatre visitors in the age group of 15-34 years in SEC AB.

Since the start of Cinematix in May this year, Dabangg‘s unaided awareness of 50 per cent has been the highest that any film has scored two weeks prior to release on Cinematix. 

“50 per cent unaided awareness means that when asked which new films are releasing in the future, 50 per cent respondents could name Dabangg as one of the upcoming films,” the company said.

Prior to Dabangg, Kites was the top film with 44 per cent unaided awareness two-weeks prior to launch, followed by Raajneeti (33 per cent), I Hate Luv Stories (31 per cent), Raavan (23 per cent), Peepli Live (22 per cent), Khatta Meetha (18 per cent) and Lafangey Parindey (12 per cent).

Cinematix track is done every week and the subscribers get a detailed report every Monday with age, gender, city and SEC-wise analysis for all films releasing in the corresponding period, as well as daily scores in the week of release.

Other films currently in the Cinematix track include: We Are Family, Anjaana Anjaani, Action Replayy, Khichdi – The Movie, Crook, Rakta Charitra and Robot.

MUMBAI: Reliance MediaWorks, a leading film and entertainment company, plans to raise up to Rs 5 billion by private placement of shares with investors.

The Anil Ambani group firm has received approval from shareholders to raise the amount through qualified institutional placement.

“A shareholders‘ approval is mandatory – and has been taken in advance, in case we propose to place a QIP anytime in this year,” the company said in a statement.

The company had approved a similar enabling resolution for QIP placement up to 25 per cent of the issued and paid up capital.

Reliance MediaWorks has also approved the appointment of Anil Sekhri, Gautam Doshi and Ajay Prasad as Director on the board of the company.

MUMBAI: The 12th MAMI Mumbai film festival this year will for the first time ever have an all-women jury. Incidentally, Mani Ratnam’s wife, Suhasini, the only Indian, has been selected to be in the panel of five jury members headed by Academy Award winner Jane Champion.

This year the MAMI film festival is being organised by Reliance Big Pictures and since they were the producers of Mani Ratnam’s film Raavan, they found it appropriate to approach Ranam’s wife to be a jury member to which she agreed.

Suhasini made her debut in 1980 with the Tamil film Nenjathai Killathe and since then, she was part of several South Indian films. She won the National Award for best actress for her role in the Tamil film Sindhu Bhairavi in ’85. In 1996, she wrote and directed Indira. She also produced Iruvar in ‘97.

Suhasini runs the production company Madras Talkies along with her husband.

NEW DELHI: The Committee on Piracy set up by the Central Government today recommended that the content creators, rights holders, distributors, optical disc manufacturers and theatre/multiplex operators need to come together and come up with cost effective solutions.

These measures will include converting traditional theatres in smaller towns into digital theatres and releasing genuine DVDs in bigger cities simultaneously with theatrical release in order to make piracy unviable.

In order to plug piracy from the cinema halls during screening of films, the responsibility should be cast on the theatre/multiplex operators to ensure that viewers do not carry a cam-cording device inside the theatre. The Committee has felt that this be made a condition of the license being granted to theatres and multiplexes by the district authorities.

The Committee has recommended that state governments may enact legislations to provide for preventive detention of video & audio pirates as has been done in some States like Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra. Video pirates may also be brought under the definition of the ‘Goondas’ under the Goonda Act.

The Committee headed by Information and Broadcasting Special Secretary Uday Kumar Varma today presented its report to I&B Minister Ambika Soni. It had been set up in pursuance of the decision arrived in the 27th State Information Ministers’ Conference held in December 2009 (SIMCON).

The Committee in its report has made key recommendations, viewing the problem of piracy through the parameters of demand and supply. In its recommendations, the Committee has focused on mainstreaming instruments of policy and practice in an effort to make piracy substantially risky and financially unattractive.

In order to make Films Entertainment more accessible, the Committee suggested that the price of legitimate Optical Discs need to be brought down in order to make filmed entertainment accessible to the people at a price that they can afford. Measures need to be undertaken to ensure high fidelity in genuine DVDs so as to dissuade the public from buying pirated versions.

Steps need to be taken by DVD manufacturers along with rights holders and content distributors to ensure that there is no compromise with the quality of genuine DVDs sold and that the viewer is not short-changed.

The Committee has also recommended amendments in the Cable Television Networks Act in order to replace the existing system of registration of cable operators with the licensing system.

Taking note of recent industry initiatives like setting up ‘”Alliance against Copyright Theft (AACT)”, the Committee recommends that such initiatives will supplement other efforts to curb piracy if multiplied and intensified.

The Committee has also recommended that the Internet Service Providers should be roped in to check Internet piracy by asking them to initiate action against errant subscribers. In this regard, the Committee recommends that the three stage strike model may be adopted.

In order to buttress the supply side, the Committee in its report has recommended traditional 35 mm screens should be converted into digital ones so as to facilitate simultaneous release of films across the country as also reduce distribution costs. Digitalisation of screens, which have already taken roots in the country with the setting up of almost 3000 such screens, need to be given impetus.

To enhance, sensitization of police, judicial and administrative officials about the Copyright Act, the Committee has felt that their efforts need to be substantially up-scaled along with training and capacity building. This would enable these officials to curb violations which have resulted in rampant piracy.

The Committee also recommended that the option of allowing copyright owners to register with the Copyright Office online should be explored. Alternatively, “censor” certificate granted by CBFC should be treated as evidence of copyright.

The aim of setting up a committee to suggest measures to combat various forms of piracy, namely, films, video, cable, and music piracy emerged during SIMCON in New Delhi on 5 December 2009 which was attended by, among others, Information Ministers of various State Governments as well as representatives of the film industry.

Appreciating that piracy is one of the biggest challenges to the integrity of the film and broadcasting industry, Soni had set up a broad based committee comprising representatives from film and broadcasting industry. The Committee was set up on 18 December with the mandate to recommend measures to combat film, video, cable and music piracy.

Apart from Varma, members of the Committee were: filmmaker Yash Chopra, Film & Television Producers’ Guild of India President Manmohan Shetty, former Film Federation of India President G. Adisheshagiri Rao, Indian Broadcasting Foundation President Jawahar Goel, Association of Radio Operators’ of India member Prashant Pandey, and the Director (Broadcasting) in the Ministry, with Director (Films) in the Ministry as Member Secretary.
 

MUMBAI: Tainted in the recent match-fixing controversy that came to light recently, Pakistani fast bowler Mohammed Asif who was to make his debut in a Malayalam film, Mazhavillin Attamvare, has been shown the door.

The film‘s director Kaithapram Damodaran Namboothiri has said that he just can‘t go ahead with the project with Asif on board. ‘He has to be changed because now I do not want to go ahead with him,‘ the debutant director said.

The film has its lead character, a Pakistani cricketer arriving as a bowling coach at a cricket academy in Kerala, searching for his roots.

‘I will try some other Pakistani cricketer and, if not, I will seek a Pakistani film actor to do the central role in my film, for which shooting starts in the second week of October,‘ Namboothiri added.

Apart from directing the film, he has also penned its story, script, dialogues and songs.

MUMBAI: Picture Thoughts‘ first venture Bhindi Baazaar will be screened at the 67th Venice Film Festival that will go underway from 1 to 11 September.

The thriller is a realistic and gripping account of politics set in the backdrop of the underbelly of Mumbai pick-pockets in the infamous and densely populated area of Mumbai‘s Bhindi Baazar.

“It‘s an honour to be a part of the prestigious Venice Film Festival this year. The type of exposure Bhindi Baazaar will amass on this platform will help create a strong buzz among the international and Indian audiences about the film,” said Picture Thoughts producer and chairman Karan Arora.

Directed by Ankush Bhatt, the film stars Kay Kay Menon, Prashant Narayanan, Piyush Mishra, Pawan Malhotra, Shilpa Shukla, Deepti Naval, Shweta Verma, Vedita, Gautam Sharma and debutant American artiste Caterina Lopez.

MUMBAI: Shah Rukh Khan is being considered to be part of a core committee of the film industry‘s Producers‘ Association. The topic will be brought up when the producers meet soon to conduct their annual general meeting (AGM).

Producers plan to suggest the name of Khan to be included in the decision-making body that will look at keeping them unified and address issues that filmmakers across India face. 

They believe that since Khan is in the industry for several years, his experience will definitely count on matters of how to keep the producers united like was evident when the producers’ body put up a brave fight against the multiplex owners in the profit sharing issue last year.

Aamir Khan was also being considered to be part of the body alongside Khan but he backed out because he was dragged to Court by the Competition Commission on charges of forming a cartel during the filmmakers and multiplex owners‘ strike.

Said Producers‘ Association senior vice-president Mukesh Bhatt, “Shah Rukh Khan‘s name being considered to hold a key post in the association is a welcome news. He should come on board since he is an actor-producer and I feel that his services would be of great help to our association.”
 

MUMBAI: Yash Raj Films’ Lafangey Parindey has been rejected by moviegoers on all counts, from its title to story to performance and music.

The film’s opening weekend grossed a dismal Rs 90 million. The film slid further as the week progressed and ended at Rs 168 million from over 800 screens.

“The script was unconvincing and poorly handled. Neil Nitin Mukesh proved a drawback and the music was not up to the mark, which is a must especially for a love story,” says Aditya Chowksey, CEO, Maurya Arts P. Ltd, a prominent CI distributor.

The week saw a cluster of six releases in ‘Aashayein‘, ‘Hello Darling‘, ‘Antardwand‘, ‘Madholal Keep Walking‘, ‘Soch Lo‘ and ‘Gumshuda‘. While a couple of them had the distinction of having made it to some film festivals, not a single one showed any commercial potential nor the face value to draw the initial audience.

As expected, the outcome has been disastrous resulting in cancelled shows for lack of audience or withdrawal from cinemas mid week.
 

MUMBAI: Fox Star Studios India has entered into a two-movie deal with Vipul Amrutlal Shah‘s Blockbuster Films.

The yet untitled film, a remake of the Tamil hit Kaka Kaka, will star John Abraham and Asin. The film will be directed by Nishikant Kamath. 

Said Fox Star Studios India CEO Vijay Singh, “It is still too early to talk about the film right now, but we will come out with a formal announcement soon.”
Shah will make a visual effects-driven fantasy action film while the other will be a contemporary romantic comedy.

The agreement between the two also includes a first look deal on Shah‘s future projects.

MUMBAI: Fun Cinemas COO Vishal Kapur, who was with the cinema chain for the last four and half years, has quit and has joined Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) chain as CEO, Nigeria.

Taking about his leaving Fun Cinemas, Kapur said, “There isn‘t any specific reason for me to quit Fun. It‘s just that I wanted to go back into the food line that I was in earlier.”

Fun Cinemas senior vice president Deepak Saluja has taken over from Kapur.
Kapur will be joining KFC on 6 September.