ITV

Category: Hindi

  • Masti sequel in the offing

    MUMBAI: Director Indra Kumar has expressed his desire to make the sequel of his rip-roarious comedy film Masti made in 2004.


    To be titled Phir Masti, the film will have Riteish Deshmukh, Vivek Oberoi, Aftab Shivdasani and Ajay Devgn.


    Talking about his decision to make a sequel to Masti, Kumar avers, “If there can be a sequel to Dhamaal, why can‘t we have a sequel to Masti?”


    Meanwhile, Kumar‘s Dhamaal 2 will start rolling by the end of August and by the time he finishes shooting for the film, the director believes that his team of writers can come up with ideas and concepts for Phir Masti.


    The 2004 release had Riteish Deshmukh, Vivek Oberoi, Aftab Shivdasani and Ajay Devgn along with Lara Dutt, Genelia D‘souza, Amrita Rao and Tara Sharma.

  • Udaan gets two awards at Giffoni Film Fest

    MUMBAI: After being selected in the ‘Un Certain Regard‘ category in the Cannes Film Festival, UTV Motion Pictures‘ Udaan has been awarded with the ‘Best Audience‘ and the ‘Best Music Score Award‘ by Music Conservatory of Salerno at the prestigious Giffoni Film Festival in Italy.


    With music composed by Amit Trivedi and lyrics by Amitabh Bhattacharya, Udaan has won the ‘Best Music Score Award‘ for reasons best cited at the award function “The music score of Udaan was able to bring together fusion and tonal music perfectly and to describe landscapes and characters with great gentleness and simplicity. Fusion music which also combined traditional Indian music and urban which proved to be an effective narrative bond.” 


    On winning the two awards, UTV Motion Pictures Senior Vice President- International Distribution and Syndication Amrita Pandey said, “Udaan, winning awards at the Giffoni Film Festival Awards is a matter of great pride and honour for us. This is certainly a great incentive for us to produce films of such intriguing and captivating nature in future. The film has scored extremely well with both critics and the audiences alike in India and even internationally. Apart from being showcased at Cannes, Udaan continues to make us proud with such awards.”


    The film also won the second place in the Campania Regional Council Award, an award that the artistic director has assigned to the films based on the results of the juror‘s votes.

  • AACT acts hard to contain piracy

    MUMBAI: With video, music and now online piracy growing to unprecedented proportions, the film industry has been taking severe beating week-after-week.


    A study undertaken by the Motion Picture Distributors Association (MPDA) put India among the top ten countries in the world where piracy was the highest.


    On the other hand a report `Economic Contribution of Indian Film and Television Industry‘ by PricewaterhouseCoopers said that the film industry was in fact significantly impacted by online piracy. In 2008, piracy cost the Indian film industry $959 million and about 571,000 jobs. 


    For example, Vishal Bharadwaj‘s Kaminey was downloaded a record number of 350,000 times in India and abroad. The situation is equally bad for regional language films with 88 per cent of Telugu and 80 per cent of Tamil films being downloaded from the internet, the report noted.


    To counter piracy, a joint initiative between the Hollywood and Bollywood studios took shape in March this year in the precincts of the FICCI Convention. It was later named Alliance Against Copyright Theft (AACT).


    Reacting to the formation of the AACT, producer Mukesh Bhatt says, “I am very happy that some entity is doing something constructive instead of only talking. For so many years, we have heard people only talk about losses caused by losses but nobody took any corrective measures. It is a welcome sign that the industry has finally woken up and is doing something to control piracy rather than raise a hue and cry about it.”


    Initially, the AACT started conducting raids along with the social security wing of the Mumbai Police and A. A. Khan and Associates in the metropolis and suburbs and spread all over Maharashtra and Gujarat.


    Just recently, the AACT launched its toll free number and sought the help of citizens of Mumbai to report any kind of piracy activity. This initiative has paid results and last month the AACT seized 500,000 pirated discs.


    But still, several stalls selling pirated CDs and DVDs can be seen in various corners of the city. Avers, Shemaroo Entertainment director Hiren Gada, “The task to contain piracy is humongous and you cannot expect a result in a small period of time. I am happy to note that the AACT is doing something constructive and building some kind of infrastructure.”


    Details an AACT spokesperson, “We have undertaken to target all forms of piracy, both physical and online, affecting India. While hard goods (pirate DVD) enforcement will be a cornerstone to the coalition, AACT will also take steps to curb the growing Internet and camcord piracy problem in India.”
     

  • Aisha nets Rs 105 million in opening weekend

    MUMBAI: Aisha, the Sonam Kapoor and Abhay Deol starrer, opened to a mixed response and netted Rs 105 million in its opening weekend in India.


    While in the metros the film opened to occupancy of around 65 to 70 per cent, smaller centres recorded occupancy of about 35 to 40 per cent.


    Comments Fun Cinemas COO Vishal Kapur, “The occupancy of Aisha was around 85 per cent. It remains to be seen how the movie will fare in the subsequent days.”


    Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai is still going strong with about 60 to 65 per cent occupancy. 


    In week one, the film‘s net collections stood at Rs 340 million domestically, according to Balaji Telefilms Group CEO Punit Kinra.


    Tere Bin Laden has been performing better than Udaan, a film co-produced by UTV and Anurag Kashyap. While the former netted Rs 6.2 million from 78 prints, Udaan collected Rs 1.8 million from 30 prints during the same three-week run.


    All eyes are now focused on Aamir Khan‘s Peepli Live that has drawn a lot of critical acclaim.

  • Mahesh Manjrekar to make a film on Maharashtra politics

    MUMBAI: Besides two Salman Khan projects on hand, Mahesh Manjrekar has also planned a Marathi film called Buddhi Bal.


    The film would be a scathing commentary on present-day Maharashtra politics and would encompass the entire gamut ranging from staunch regionalism to the anti-migrants‘ policy.


    The film that promises to spare no politician or political party will abound with theatre actors who resemble real-life politicians. He has already zeroed in on artistes who bear a striking resemblance to Bal Thackeray, Raj Thackeray and Uddhav Thackeray.


    Says Manjrekar, “I‘ve selected actors who resemble the politicians. This makes the task of making audiences empathize with actors much easier. I don‘t have to spend time in explaining family trees.”


    The film would also make scathing comments on MNS activities against poor migrants from Bihar and UP.


    Comments the director-actor, “My film is not judgemental about Maharashtra politics. I am fascinated by the entire spectrum of politicians and their chess-like maneuvers in the state. Everyone is playing a game of one-upmanship. There are no real issues that bother politicians in Maharashtra. Every issue is raised for the vote bank. That‘s why I‘ve called my film Buddhi Bal which is the Marathi word for chess.”


    The film that will have Sachin Khedekar playing an important role is set to go on the floors in October.
     

  • Saroj Khan’s dance academy set to open in Malaysia

    MUMBAI: Noted choreographer Saroj Khan is all set to open her dance academy in Malaysia.


    The Saroj Khan Dance Academy will be a joint venture between Khan and her local partner, Pen ‘N‘ Camera (M) Sdn Bhd. It will offer a four-month diploma programme in dancing, acting and singing.


    Students of the dance academy will also be given the opportunity to act as back-up dancers for Hindi films that will be shot in Malaysia. 


    Saroj is best known for her exceptiona dance movements in hit films like Devdas, Guru, Veer-Zaara and Taal among others.


    Besides Tabu, Nagma, Ravi Kishen and Shakti Kapoor will endorse the academy.


    Indian films from Bollywood are extremely popular in Malaysia, where there are 1.7 million ethnic Indians.

  • Anurag Kashyap plans 3D movie

    MUMBAI: Anurag Kashyap has firmed up plans for two movies, one of which will be in the 3D horror genre.


    The film set in the coal mines of Bihar will have a new star cast with Manoj Bajpai the only known face. The film spans over six decades and three generations. Kashyap will start rolling his film in October after the Venice and Toronto film festivals.


    Kashyap is also planning to do a 3D horror movie titled Tumbad.

  • Ahmedabad film fest kicks off with Harishchandrachi Factory

    MUMBAI: The International Film Festival kicked off in Ahmedabad with Paresh Mokashi‘s film Harishchandrachi Factory as the first exhibit. The film was India‘s nomination to Oscars last year.


    The event got underway with a dance performance, Suverna‘, choreographed by Kumudini Lakhia. It depicted the spirit of India‘s 50 years of celebration. The performance was followed by felicitation of Paresh Mokashi for his film.


    “It‘s been a great experience for me to screen my film in Ahmedabad. I was overwhelmed to see the response that my film received and the appreciation and encouragement by audience has been the biggest award for me. It‘s an honour that Harishchandrachi Factory is the opening film of International Film Festival at Ahmedabad and it‘s a feeling of deja vu for me,” Mokashi said.


    The opening day event was attended by dignitaries like Ketan Mehta, Gopi Desai, Subrata Bhowmick, John Lee Jr and Tanishtha Chatterjee among others.


    This year the Ahmedabad festival, which will showcase some of the best movies, will have a special screening of Aisha. The festival also includes short films and 20 award-winning films in the five days of its run.

  • Reliance MediaWorks narrows Q1 net loss to Rs 536.45 mn

    MUMBAI: Reliance MediaWorks Ltd (formerly known as Adlabs Films) has posted a consolidated net loss (after minority interest) of Rs 536.45 million for the quarter ended 30 June, narrowing it from Rs 636.96 million in the same quarter of the previous year.


    Reliance MediaWorks continues to maintain its strong investment phase and all its projects are well on track. “As a result of the continued investments and stabilisation of business verticals, the interest and depreciation charge, the company has recorded a net loss of Rs 536.45 million (US$ 12 million),” it said.


    Total revenue of the company jumped 100 per cent to stand at Rs 2.08 billion, as compared to Rs 1.05 billion in the year ago period. However, the company noted that figures are not strictly comparable with the corresponding period previous year, which was partially impacted by the strike between producers, distributors and exhibitors.


    The company‘s expenses also jumped 63.31 per cent to Rs 2.31 billion in the quarter, as against Rs 1.42 billion in the year ago period. This was mainly because of higher payout to distributors after enforcement of the new revenue sharing agreement, higher personal cost and decrease in stock value.


    Ebitda from operations stood at Rs 200 million against a loss of Rs 90 million in the previous year.


    “Reliance MediaWorks has delivered robust performance in the quarter and have started seeing strong returns on investments from the assets created in past two years. The forthcoming quarter has a steady movie line-up with more than 12 wide releases, which will help us leverage our leading presence across the entire film and media services value chain,” said Reliance MediaWorks CEO Anil Arjun.


    On a standalone basis, the net loss for the quarter was Rs 317.02 million (from Rs 661.05 million). Total income of the company for the quarter was Rs 1.29 billion, while expenses were at Rs 1.35 billion.


    In the segment-wise results, theatrical business reported a revenue of Rs 1.35 billion, a jump of 91 per cent from previous year’s Rs 708.73 million. But this was mainly because of previous year quarter had no new movie releases.


    The strong revenue growth helped the company to reduce the operational loss to Rs 237.4 million (Rs 298.88 million operational loss in the previous year).


    Total capital investment in the theatrical exhibition segment stands at Rs 10.91 billion.


    From the film production services segment, the company has earned a revenue of Rs 730.78 million, as compared to Rs 288.89 million in the previous quarter. It also posted an operating profit of Rs 121.17 million during the quarter under review (from previous year’s Rs 15.08 million).


    However, in the TV/Film production and distribution segment, the revenue dropped to Rs 44.93 million, from Rs 70.81 million a year ago. The company posted an operating profit from the segment of Rs 4.78 million, as against a profit of Rs 12.80 million for Q1 FY ’09.

  • Multiplex operators post weak recovery in FY’10

    The multiplex operators were up against the wall in FY’10. The first quarter was gobbled by a bitter row with the film producers, freezing fresh movie content from the Bollywood studios. Revenues went for a toss as they tried to source alternate content and tapped regional language movies.

    The bruise didn’t disappear in a hurry as the revenue-share arrangement increased their content costs. The release window shortened as film producers had to find space in the clutter. The situation worsened as most of the movies bombed at the box office.

    Corrective measures were taken and the major players hiked ticket prices while their expenses also deepened. Revenue for the fiscal jumped but operating profit took a knock.

    Revenue soars

    The combined turnover of the five listed cinema exhibitors stood at Rs 13.73 billion in FY’10, up 21.47 per cent over the earlier year. The major reason was hike in the ticket prices and some blockbuster movies in between (like 3Idiots, Ajab Prem Ki Gajab Kahani etc).

    Reliance Mediaworks, Fame India and Cinemax saw maximum growth in revenues, jumping 39.5 per cent, 28.7 per cent and 25 per cent for each of them. Inox Leisure saw a moderate 12.6 per cent growth, while PVR had a measly 3.2 per cent increase in its income.

    Higher expenses as distributor payout increases

    Multiplex operators had to cough out more to the film distributors due to the new revenue share agreement.

    Though the companies kept control over personnel costs, their interests in organic and inorganic growth led them to invest to build or acquire properties. This resulted in increase in expenses.

    Expenses in the fiscal stood at Rs 13.59 billion, up 24 per cent, from Rs 10.98 billion in FY09. (Disclaimer: All expenses figure are on approximate basis barring PVR, as the companies have not given the expenses for the exhibition segment separately.).

    Fame India, Reliance MediaWorks and Cinemax had seen over 30 per cent increase in their expenses during the fiscal, compared to the year-ago period.

    Inox saw a 16.5 per cent rise in expenses over the year-ago period, while PVR kept the expenses under control with just over one per cent increase over the earlier year.

    At the operational level, all the exhibitors had a bad year as between the two fiscals, their profit narrowed by 58.3 per cent in FY’10 over the year-ago period. The FY’10 operating profit stood at Rs 179.09 million as compared to operating profit of Rs 429.69 million.

    The companies who suffered the most were Fame India (down 80.3%), and Cinemax (down 64.07%). However, Reliance MediaWorks, which had suffered an operating loss from the exhibition sector during FY’09 (Rs 454.56 million), increased the losses by nine per cent to Rs 495.37 million in the fiscal 2009-10.

     

     

    The cinema exhibitors are expected to put up a better show in FY’11 with an increase in ticket prices and, hopefully, more successful movies.