ITV

Tag: Shobha Kapoor

  • All segments rake in numbers for Balaji Telefilms, Alt Balaji numbers up

    All segments rake in numbers for Balaji Telefilms, Alt Balaji numbers up

    BENGALURU: One of the most successful television content production houses in India, the Shobha Kapoor and Ektaa Kapoor-led Balaji Telefilms Ltd (Balaji) reported growth in revenue from all its three segments for the quarter ended 31 December 2019 (Q3 2019, quarter or period under review) as compared to the corresponding year ago quarter Q3 2019.  The company’s board of directors has declared an interim dividend of 20 percent or Rs 0.40 per share for the financial year 2019-20.

    In its investor presentation, the Balaji says that its TV Business contributes to 15 percent of prime-time ratings and that it is the number one production house by a wide margin. It had nine shows running through the quarter with two new launches, while two shows came to an end. The Indian drama series Yeh Hai Chahatein, a spin-off show based on Yeh Hai Mohabbatein was launched on Star Plus. The fourth season of the very popular supernatural series Naagin was launched on Viacom18’s flagship Hindi GEC Colors, replacing Kaavach 2. Also Balaji Telefilms released one new film – Dream Girl in Q3 2019.

    Balaji’s posted more than double (up 144.5 percent) y-o-y growth in standalone profit after tax or PAT for Q3 2019. Standalone revenue from operations increased 77.9 percent y-o-y in Q3 2020.

    Though it has yet to become profitable, Balaji’s OTT platform ALT Balaji operating revenue almost tripled (increased 187.5 percent y-o-y to Rs 23.14 crore during the period under review as compared to Rs 8.05 crore in Q3 2019. The company reported lower operating loss for ALT Balaji at Rs 12.27 crore for Q3 2020 as compared to an operating loss of Rs 32.95 crore for Q3 2019.

    Revenue from the company’s television programming increased 3.4 percent y-o-y to Rs 81.96 crore in Q3 2020 as compared to Rs 79.3 crore in the corresponding year ago quarter. Revenue from Commissioned programmes segment increased 28.2 percent y-o-y in Q3 2020 to Rs 133.10 crore from Rs 103.79 crore in Q3 2019. Commissioned programmes business operating results increased by 56.2 percent during the period to Rs 27.94 crore as compared to Rs 17.89 crore in the corresponding year ago quarter. Balaji produced 10.1 percent more programming hours during the quarter under review at 219 hours as compared to 199 hours in Q3 2019, but realisation per hour in Q3 2020 at Rs 0.37 crore was lower y-o-y as compared to Rs 0.40 crore in Q3 2019 according to the company’s investor presentation.

    Revenue from Balaji’s Films segment increased nine-fold (increased 800.4 percent) y-o-y in Q3 2020 to Rs 93.89 crore from Rs 25.33 crore. Films segment operating results was more than 70 times higher (up 6,978.9 percent) at Rs 33.50 crore as compared to an operating profit of Rs 0.43 crore in Q3 2019.

    Balaji’s standalone PAT for Q3 2020 and Q3 2019 was Rs 29.41 crore and Rs 12.02 crore respectively.  On a consolidated basis, the company reported PAT in Q3 2020 at Rs 13.83 crore as compared to a consolidated loss of Rs 27.31 crore in Q3 2019. Standalone EBITDA increased by 77.9 percent y-o-y in Q3 2020 to Rs 198.36 crore from Rs 111.50 crore.

    Standalone operating revenue for Q3 2020 and Q3 2019 was Rs 198.36 crore and Rs 111.50 crore respectively. Consolidated operating revenue in Q3 2020 increased 95 percent y-o-y to Rs 187.89 crore from Rs 96.33 crore.

    Company Speak

    Balaji Telefilms managing director Shobha Kapoor said in the investor release, ”This quarter we created good, compelling and entertaining content across all our business verticals and this has resulted in a very strong financial performance. Apart from driving the top line, we remain focused on cost-saving measures that allow us to leverage economies of scale in content production, yielding an improved bottom line. We will continue to focus on growing the business profitably and utilising our existing cash reserves prudently, as we have been doing.”

    Let us look at the other numbers reported by Balaji

    Consolidated total income for Q3 2020 at Rs 190.68 crore was 81.1 percent higher y-o-y as compared to Rs 105.30 crore. Consolidated total expenses for the period under review increased 25 percent y-o-y to Rs 192.58 crore from Rs 140.22 crore.

    Consolidated cost of production was almost flat (declined 0.9 percent) y-o-y in Q3 2020 to Rs 95.07 crore as compared to Rs 95.95 crore. Consolidated marketing and distribution expenses in Q3 2020 declined 37.1 percent y-o-y to Rs 6.76 crore from Rs 10.74 crore. Consolidated employee benefits expense in Q3 2020 declined 34.2 percent y-o-y to Rs 9.37 crore from Rs 14.25 crore. Consolidated other expenses in Q2 2020 increased 63 percent y-o-y to Rs 16.02 crore from Rs 9.83 crore.

  • Production rakes in numbers for Balaji Telefilms; Alt Balaji numbers up

    Production rakes in numbers for Balaji Telefilms; Alt Balaji numbers up

    BENGALURU: One of the most successful television content production houses in India, the Shobha Kapoor and Ektaa Kapoor-led Balaji Telefilms Ltd (Balaji) reported more than double standalone profit after tax or PAT (up 117.6 percent) y-o-y for the quarter ended 30 September 2019 (Q2 2019, quarter or period under review) as compared to the corresponding year ago quarter Q2 2019. Standalone revenue from operations increased 58.7 percent y-o-y in Q2 2020. Though it has yet to become profitable, Balaji’s OTT platform ALTBalaji operating revenue increased 40.8 percent y-o-y at Rs 20.11 crore during the period under review as compared to Rs 14.28 crore in Q2 2019. The company reported an operating loss for ALT Balaji at Rs 28.71 crore for Q2 2020 as compared to an operating loss of Rs 23.23 crore for Q2 2019.

    Balaji’s Standalone PAT for Q2 2020 and Q2 2019 was Rs 15.50 crore and Rs 7.12 crore respectively. The company incurred a lower consolidated loss in Q2 2020 at Rs 10.73 crore as compared to a consolidated loss of Rs 15.44 crore in Q2 2019. Standalone EBITDA almost quintupled (increased by 389.5 percent y-o-y in Q2 2020 to Rs 30.83 crore from Rs 6.30 crore.

    Standalone operating revenue for Q2 2020 and Q2 2019 was Rs 179.35 crore and Rs 119.07 crore respectively. Consolidated operating revenue in Q2 2020 increased 57.4 percent y-o-y to Rs 187.46 crore from Rs 119.07 crore.

    Though Balaji produced more programming hours during the quarter under review at 210.5 hours as compared to 193 hours in Q2 2019, lower realisation per hour in Q2 2020 at Rs 0.36 crore as compared to Rs 0.40 crore in Q2 2019 resulted in a revenue decline according to the company’s investor presentation. Revenue from the company’s television business declined 1.9 percent y-o-y to Rs 75.6 crore in Q2 2020 as compared to Rs 77.1 crore in Q2 2019.

    Consolidated operating revenue in Q2 2020 increased 57.4 percent y-o-y to Rs 187.46 crore from Rs 119.07 crore. Revenue from commissioned programmes declined 4.7 percent y-o-y to Rs 84.29 crore from Rs 88.42 crore. Operating profit  for Commissioned Programmes segment almost doubled (up 98.4 percent) y-o-y to Rs 25.89 crore from Rs 13.05 crore.

    Revenue from Films segment almost quadrupled (increased 270.7 percent) y-o-y in Q2 2020 to Rs 93.89 crore from Rs 25.33 crore. Films segment reported operating profit of Rs 16.25 crore as compared to an operating profit of Rs 1.32 crore in Q2 2019.

    Company Speak

    Balaji Telefilms managing director Shobha Kapoor said in the investor release, ”This quarter we created good, compelling and entertaining content across all our business verticals and this has resulted in a very strong financial performance. Apart from driving the top line, we remain focused on cost-saving measures that allow us to leverage economies of scale in content production, yielding an improved bottom line. We will continue to focus on growing the business profitably and utilising our existing cash reserves prudently, as we have been doing.”

    Let us look at the other numbers reported by Balaji

    Consolidated total income for Q2 2020 at Rs 192.63 crore was 53.2 percent higher y-o-y as compared to Rs 125.76 crore. Consolidated total expenses for the period under review increased 37.3 percent y-o-y to Rs 192.58 crore from Rs 140.22 crore.

    Consolidated cost of production declined 5.9 percent y-o-y in Q2 2020 to Rs 92.76 crore from Rs 98.57 crore. Consolidated marketing and distribution expenses in Q2 2020 more than tripled (up 233.6 percent) y-o-y to Rs 37.22 crore from Rs 11.16 crore. Consolidated employee benefits expense in Q2 2020 declined 50.1 percent y-o-y to Rs 6.53 crore from Rs 13.08 crore. Consolidated other expenses in Q2 2020 increased 96.2 percent y-o-y to Rs 20.56 crore from Rs 10.48 crore.

  • Balaji Telefilms commissioned programs, ALT Balaji numbers up in Q1 2019

    Balaji Telefilms commissioned programs, ALT Balaji numbers up in Q1 2019

    BENGALURU: The Jitendra Kapoor-Shobha Kapoor-Ektaa Kapoor-led Balaji Telefilms Ltd reported 33.1 percent y-o-y growth in revenue from its Commissioned Programmes (CP) segment for the quarter ended 30 June 2019 (Q1 2020, quarter or period under review) as compared to the corresponding year ago quarter. The company also reported more than doubling (up 113.1 percent) of revenue from its Digital segment (ALT Balaji) in the quarter under review as compared to Q1 2019. Revenue for Balaji Telefilms CP segment for Q1 2020 and Q1 2019 was Rs 93.17 crore and Rs 70.01 crore respectively. Revenue from ALT Balaji was Rs 12.33 crore and Rs 5.78 crore for Q1 2020 and Q2 2019 respectively. The company reported less than one-fortieth operating revenue (down 97.5 percent) for Q1 2020 at Rs 1.67 crore as compared to Rs 68.04 crore from its films segment

    Overall, on a consolidated basis, Balaji Telefilms reported 26.7 percent y-o-y decline in operating revenue for Q1 2020 at Rs 90.52 crore from Rs 123.44 crore. The company explained that there were no film releases during Q1 2020, as compared to 1 film that was released in the corresponding quarter of the previous year. Consolidated EBITDA for Q1 2020 was an operating loss of Rs 33.24 crore as compared to an operating loss of 27.98 crore in Q1 2019. The company reported a consolidated loss of Rs 41.54 crore for the quarter under review as compared to a consolidated loss of Rs 27.03 crore in Q1 2019.

    The company reported an operating profit (result) of Rs 9.67 crore for Q1 2020 as compared to a loss of Rs 2.12 crore in Q1 2019 from its CP segment. Commissioned programming hours in Q1 2020 increased 15 percent y-o-y to 195.5 from 170.5 in Q1 2019. Revenue from commission programmes increased 21 percent y-o-y to Rs 69.6 crore in Q1 2020 from Rs 57.3 crore in Q1 2019. Net realisation per hour increased 5 percent in Q1 2020 to Rs 0.36 crore from Rs 0.35 crore in Q1 2019.  

    For ALT Balaji, the company reported a higher operating loss (result) of Rs 36.83 crore for Q1 2020 as compared to a loss of Rs 28.76 crore for Q1 2019.  The company reported 25.3 million subscribers at the end of Q1 2020 as compared to 3.4 million subscribers at the end of Q1 2019. As on 8 August 2020, Balaji Telefilms claims that it had 27.3 million subscribers. (100 lakhs = 10 million = 1 crore)

    For its Films segment, Balaji Telefilms reported an operating loss (result) of Rs 0.10 crore for the quarter under review as compared to an operating profit of Rs 8.91 crore in Q1 2019.

    On a standalone basis, Balaji Telefilms operating revenue in Q1 2020 declined 38 percent to Rs 82.85 crore from Rs 133.65 crore in Q1 2019. EBITDA for Q1 2010 was Rs 10.56 crore as compared to an operating loss of Rs 0.88 crore for Q1 2019. The company reported standalone profit after tax of Rs 2.53 crore as compared to a loss of Rs 1.20 crore for Q1 2019.

    Balaji Telefilms managing director Shobha Kapoor said, “Operationally this was a good quarter with strong performance across all business and the two deals in our movie and digital business dramatically improves our financial profile going forward and will allow us to pursue our growth ambitions. I also take this opportunity to thank Sunil Lulla our Group CEO who has decided to pursue other opportunities after a brief period with us. Sunil leaves Balaji Telefilms in a very strong position for future growth and the rest of the leadership team will continue to drive the business forward.”

  • ALTbalaji & ZEE5 announce content alliance to grow the subscription video on demand business

    ALTbalaji & ZEE5 announce content alliance to grow the subscription video on demand business

    National: With an aim to leverage each other’s strengths in the OTT domain, ZEE5 and ALTBalajihave collaborated to co-create original content which will only be available on both platforms. 

    The content sharing arrangement,  includes co-creation of 60+ Original content series (in Hindi) which will be available exclusively to SVOD subscribers of both platforms. This association is a collaborative process of co-understanding consumer insights and co-marketing to serve the viewer better and resulting in improved monetisation for both. 

    ZEE5 and ALTBalaji have established their content strength globally, and the synergy will result in two of the largest homegrown video streaming platforms coming together to expand their subscription base and grow the binge-watching culture globally.

    Mr. Punit Goenka, MD & CEO, ZEEL said, “I truly cherish the bond between Balaji and ZEE, which has been nurtured and built over the last two decades. Together, we have created some path breaking content masterpieces which have truly entertained our esteemed audiences. I am most certain that this association will enable both the brands to re-create the magic, this time in the digital space.”

    As per the association, ALTBalaji will maintain an exclusive partnership with ZEE5, in order to enhance its offering to the market, with a focused and strategic approach.

    Commenting on this development Mrs. Shobha Kapoor, Managing Director, Balaji Telefilms said, “This collaboration strengthens the 25 yearold fruitful relationship between Zee Group and Balaji Telefilms, from Television content, to Movie Monetisation and now to Digital Video Streaming. It plays to each partner’s individual strength and the consumer is the ultimate winner. This partnership will result in Balaji Telefilms being profitable as an entity, thereby giving us an opportunity to scale up our business ambitions, creating value for all our stakeholders.”

    In two years of commercial launch, ALTBalaji has one of the largest libraries of Hindi original and exclusive shows. It remains one of India’s favourite online destinations for truly engaging content. Shows such as  The Test Case, Apharan, Home, Kehne Ko Humsafar Hain, and Bose: Dead or Alive have won many accolades and has an ever-growing audience base that watches Indian shows across the globe.

    Ms. Ekta Kapoor, Joint MD,  Balaji Telefilms added, “As part of this partnership ZEE5 subscribers will get seamless access to ALTBalaji’s clutter breaking originals in addition to ZEE5 existing content. This partnership enables  ALTBalaji to continue to  scale up rapidly its content creation ambitions and focus on building the largest library of original exclusive shows in India. We hope that ALTBalaji and ZEE5 will set benchmarks in unique storytelling.”

    Mr. TarunKatial, CEO, ZEE5 Indiaadded, “In the first year of going live, we, at ZEE5, have focussed on building a strong repository of content and this is evident in the 100,000+ hours of content that we have on the platform. Overtime, we have seen a steady increase in viewership of regional originalcontent and this partnershipwill be a great opportunity for our viewers to enjoy the best of both worlds – the one created by ALTBalaji and us.We believe, this will be a game-changer for both – the industry as well as the audiences. We are glad to initiate this trend where content creators can partner to bring the best immersive experience for the viewers.Thiscollaboration promises immense growth potential for both partners.”

    In 2019 itself, ZEE5 has rolled out around 25 original shows across genres, and the platform is committed to launching 72+shows by March 2020. It has crossed 50 million gross downloads since launch on the Play Store and had 76.4million monthly active users globally in June 2019.
     

  • Balaji Telefilms TV, film biz report stellar growth; ALTBalaji subscriber base at 13.1 mn

    Balaji Telefilms TV, film biz report stellar growth; ALTBalaji subscriber base at 13.1 mn

    BENGALURU: India’s premier television and digital content creation house Balaji Telefilms Ltd reported stellar performance from its television and film making business (TV business, or standalone) for the quarter ended 31 December 2018 (Q3 2019, quarter, period, under review).

    The company has three segments – commissioned programs, films and digital.

    Balaji’s TV business commissioned programmes – (number of hours of content creation) grew 11 percent year-on-year (y-o-y) during the quarter under review to 199 hours as compared to 179 hours in the corresponding year ago quarter. Net realisation per hour of commissioned programmes went up to Rs 0.4 crore or by about 21 percent y-o-y in Q3 2019 as compared to Rs 0.33 per hour in Q3 2018.  However gross margin and gross margin percentage have both gone down in Q3 2019 to Rs 0.11 crore and 27.3 percent respectively as compared to Rs 0.13 crore and 37.9 percent respectively in the year ago quarter.

    Overall, Balaji Telefilms TV business (or standalone) operating revenue increased 87.4 percent in the period under review to Rs 111.3 crore as compared to Rs 59.4 crore in Q3 2018. TV business profit after tax grew 29 percent y-o-y to Rs 12 crore from Rs 9.3 crore.

    Balaji reported Rs 7.93 crore for Q3 2019 for its film segment as compared to Rs 1.85 crore for Q3 2018. The segment had an operating profit of Rs 1.42 crore during the period under review as compared to operating profit of Rs 0.73 crore in Q3 2018.

    However, on a consolidated basis, it is Balaji Telefilms digital segment, its OTT platform ALTBalaji that more than wiped off the profits generated by the other segments. ALTBalaji incurred a loss of Rs 36.4 crore on operating revenue of Rs 8 crore during the quarter under review. Comparatively, in the third quarter of the previous fiscal, Balaji Telefilms had reported revenue of Rs 1.1 crore and a loss of Rs 17.8 crore for ALTBalaji. The good news is that ALTBalaji’s sold subscription base has gone up by more than twenty times – from 0.052 crore in Q3 2018 to 1.05 crore at close of December 2018.

    Balaji Telefilms managing director Shobha Kapoor said, “We are pleased to announce another strong performance this quarter, highlighted improving margins that has cemented our place as a leader in the Indian media industry. Our in-house content gives us the ability to create strong franchises, nurture new talent and ultimately give consumers the best possible entertainment choices, hence making it a value proposition for our investors and stakeholders.”

    Let us look at the other consolidated numbers reported by Balaji Telefilms

    Balaji Telefilms consolidated revenue from operations increased 48.8 percent y-o-y in Q3 2019 to Rs 96.33 crore from Rs 64.73 crore. Consolidated total income for the period under review grew 50.8 percent y-o-y to Rs 105.3 crore from Rs 69.85 crore. The company reported a consolidated loss of Rs 27.31 crore in Q3 2019 as compared to profit after tax of Rs 25.82 crore in Q3 2018. Calculated consolidated simple EBITDA for Q3 2019 was an operating loss of Rs 26.18 crore as compared to a consolidated operating loss of Rs 7.5 crore in Q3 2018.

    Total expenditure for the quarter under review was 66.1 percent higher y-o-y at Rs 126.92 crore as compared to Rs 76.4 crore in Q3 2018. Cost of production/ acquisition and telecast fees in the quarter at Rs 95.95 crore was 26.6 percent higher y-o-y as compared to Rs 75.77 crore in Q3 2018. Marketing expenses increased 53.5 percent y-o-y in Q3 2019 to Rs 10.74 crore from Rs 7 crore. Employee benefits expense in Q3 2019 increased to more than double – (increased by 107.2 percent) to Rs 14.25 crore from Rs 6.87 crore. Other expenses in Q3 2019 declined 18.7 percent y-o-y to Rs 9.83 crore from Rs 12.08 crore.

  • Sunil Lulla joins Balaji Telefilms as group CEO

    Sunil Lulla joins Balaji Telefilms as group CEO

    MUMBAI: Indian production company Balaji Telefilms has appointed Sunil Lulla as its new group chief executive officer. His new role will be effective from 25 May 2018. He will replace Sameer Nair who quit the company to join Applause Entertainment.

    Speaking on his appointment, Lulla says, “I am incredibly excited to join Balaji Telefilms at this stage of the company’s evolution into a B2C media business. Balaji Telefilms has a great combination of engaging and compelling content and distribution on the back of explosive growth in online video consumption. Balaji Telefilms is well positioned to become a leading player in the Indian media sector and I am motivated to join the leadership team and all the great people that have fuelled Balaji Telefilms success so far.”

    Balaji Telefilms managing director Shobha Kapoor adds, “We are pleased that Sunil will be joining us as group CEO and are confident that he is the right person to lead Balaji to the next stage of growth and value creation. He is a seasoned leader with a stellar leadership reputation and brings with him a wealth of consumer business experience. The Indian media sector is undergoing massive change which also creates enormous opportunities for us at Balaji Telefilms and Sunil will lead the efforts with the rest of the team to seize these opportunities and create value for all our stakeholders.”

    Lulla has over three decades of experience across media, entertainment and broadcast industry. In his last stint, he was the chairman and managing director of ad agency Grey Group India. He has worked with Saregama, MTV, Sony and other networks and launched the TV network for Bennett Coleman & Co, The Times Television Network.

  • ALTBalaji’s Nachiket Pantvaidya promoted to Balaji group COO

    ALTBalaji’s Nachiket Pantvaidya promoted to Balaji group COO

    BENGALURU: Nachiket Pantvaidya’s success with Balaji Telefilms’ OTT platform ALTBalaji has led to his elevation as Balaji Group COO. He will continue to remain CEO of ALTBalaji.

    Commenting on the appointment Balaji Telefilms managing director Shobha Kapoor said, “Nachiket joined ALTBalaji nearly two years ago and has successfully created a strong and valuable B2C brand at ALTBalaji. He brings strong leadership and management skills and will now work closely with the television and movies business to help transform the company as we now work to reach Indians globally across multiple screen formats. We wish Nachiket the very best and look forward to bringing together all our collective strengths and expertise to create value for our shareholders.”

    Pantvaidya joined ALTBalaji in 2015. The Balaji OTT platform soon climbed to new heights after its launch in April 2017.

    Balaji Telefilms claims that ALTBalaji has been ranked as the third best video streaming app by revenue in the latest App Annie survey. The company claims that the app has been downloaded 8.9 million times and that it is available globally and on all the leading OS.

  • ‘A Flying Jatt’ is passable kid stuff

    ‘A Flying Jatt’ is passable kid stuff

    The producers of A Flying Jatt,  Balaji Motion Pictures, takes a total diversion with this film. From their earlier blend of films with mainly adult themes, they have moved to a film that caters to children and the preteen lot. Complately inspired by foreign superhero films, A Flying Jatt keeps Indian sensibilities as its main theme instead.

    The film follows in the footsteps of earlier films of this genre: the incognito superhero kinds like Boney Kapoor’s Mr India (1987), Rakesh Roshan’s Krrish (2006) and Krrish3 (2013), Romu Sippy’s Shiva KaInsaaf (3D- 1985), Tinnu Anand’s Shahenshah(1988) and earlier ones like Kishore Kumar-starrer Mr X In Bombay (1964), which dealt with the villains of the mortal kind.

    A Flying Jatt is about a superhero who propagates Swachh Bharat or Clean India and sings paeans to the valour and glory of the Sikh community and fights a super villain.

    Tiger Shroff is a martial arts instructor at a local school in Punjab. Thanks to his blundering ways and shy nature, he is never taken seriously and even his mastery over the art is passable. His young students make fun of him. While he nurses a silent love for Jacqueline Fernandez, he can’t gather the courage to express it.

    Tiger is the son of Amrita Singh who always pushes him to take inspiration from his dead father who was considered a hero by the locals. Amrita’s troubles start when a drug mafia run by KK Menon decides to grab her land, which would help his drug factory save millions in money as well as time, due to easy access to the drug markets. But the piece of land holds deep memories for Amrita and it also has a 200 year old tree that is worshipped by the people.

    Menon fails to convince Amrita with money and tries the only other way he knows: by sending out his goons. While the average goons are dealt with by Amrita herself, the tougher ones are for Tiger to handle. To match the strength of Tiger, he sends out his ultimate weapon, the gigantic-looking Nathan Jones (an Australian actor, power-lifting champion and an ex-professional wrestler). Jones takes on Tiger who, in the process of their duel, gets blessed by the sacred tree with super powers and also gets the imprints of the religious symbol of Sikh faith on his back.

    Tiger can now do things a normal human can’t like flying and also packing a powerful punch. Jones, who was buried in the mud, returns to the scene more powerful now as his blood has turned black and he survives by whiffing on polluted air and other waste strewn around by the society. Thanks to the people’s apathy towards environment, Jones is unbeatable, at least on Planet Earth.

    Amrita wants Tiger to don the pagree his father wore, which he refuses because other kids made fun of him with Sikh jokes. While the film goes on to teach people the virtue of keeping the environs clean as well as planting more trees, Amrita, for her part, initiates Tiger into the virtues of Sikh way of life and tells him stories of their exploits.

    Meanwhile, Menon has mended his ways after he almost lost his daughter to pollution-related ailment. But, by this time, Jones is out of control. He has a personal grudge against Tiger now.

    A Flying Jatt does not have much of a story. It is about a simpleton who gains super powers and a lot of footage goes into showing his prowess as he saves people in distress, from calamities as well as goons.

    The length at 151 minutes makes things repetitive while trying for a film aimed mainly at children. In the first half, some comic scenes entertain its target audience. The direction is good in general with impressive use of special effects; the effects in the song ,which also has a nice melodious feel to it, are good. Beat pe booty… is already popular and both songs are appealing. Cinematography is competent. Tiger Shroff excels in dances and action, both being his forte. Jacqueline is okay. Amrita Singh makes her presence felt, while KK Menon has little to do. Nathan Jones can’t act and his drawls are incomprehensible. The film needed to be edited extensively.

    A Flying Jatt is a passable fare with appeal for kids besides audiences in Delhi and Punjab generally. Released on Thursday to cash in on the festive mood of Janmashtami, it gets three more days to rake in the moolah over the weekend at the box office. Sustenance thereafter will be tough.

    Producers: Shobha Kapoor, Ekta Kapoor.

    Director: Remo D’Souza.

    Cast: Tiger Shroff, Jacqueline Fernandez, Amrita Singh, KK Menon, Nathan Jones and Shraddha Kapoor in a cameo.

  • ‘A Flying Jatt’ is passable kid stuff

    ‘A Flying Jatt’ is passable kid stuff

    The producers of A Flying Jatt,  Balaji Motion Pictures, takes a total diversion with this film. From their earlier blend of films with mainly adult themes, they have moved to a film that caters to children and the preteen lot. Complately inspired by foreign superhero films, A Flying Jatt keeps Indian sensibilities as its main theme instead.

    The film follows in the footsteps of earlier films of this genre: the incognito superhero kinds like Boney Kapoor’s Mr India (1987), Rakesh Roshan’s Krrish (2006) and Krrish3 (2013), Romu Sippy’s Shiva KaInsaaf (3D- 1985), Tinnu Anand’s Shahenshah(1988) and earlier ones like Kishore Kumar-starrer Mr X In Bombay (1964), which dealt with the villains of the mortal kind.

    A Flying Jatt is about a superhero who propagates Swachh Bharat or Clean India and sings paeans to the valour and glory of the Sikh community and fights a super villain.

    Tiger Shroff is a martial arts instructor at a local school in Punjab. Thanks to his blundering ways and shy nature, he is never taken seriously and even his mastery over the art is passable. His young students make fun of him. While he nurses a silent love for Jacqueline Fernandez, he can’t gather the courage to express it.

    Tiger is the son of Amrita Singh who always pushes him to take inspiration from his dead father who was considered a hero by the locals. Amrita’s troubles start when a drug mafia run by KK Menon decides to grab her land, which would help his drug factory save millions in money as well as time, due to easy access to the drug markets. But the piece of land holds deep memories for Amrita and it also has a 200 year old tree that is worshipped by the people.

    Menon fails to convince Amrita with money and tries the only other way he knows: by sending out his goons. While the average goons are dealt with by Amrita herself, the tougher ones are for Tiger to handle. To match the strength of Tiger, he sends out his ultimate weapon, the gigantic-looking Nathan Jones (an Australian actor, power-lifting champion and an ex-professional wrestler). Jones takes on Tiger who, in the process of their duel, gets blessed by the sacred tree with super powers and also gets the imprints of the religious symbol of Sikh faith on his back.

    Tiger can now do things a normal human can’t like flying and also packing a powerful punch. Jones, who was buried in the mud, returns to the scene more powerful now as his blood has turned black and he survives by whiffing on polluted air and other waste strewn around by the society. Thanks to the people’s apathy towards environment, Jones is unbeatable, at least on Planet Earth.

    Amrita wants Tiger to don the pagree his father wore, which he refuses because other kids made fun of him with Sikh jokes. While the film goes on to teach people the virtue of keeping the environs clean as well as planting more trees, Amrita, for her part, initiates Tiger into the virtues of Sikh way of life and tells him stories of their exploits.

    Meanwhile, Menon has mended his ways after he almost lost his daughter to pollution-related ailment. But, by this time, Jones is out of control. He has a personal grudge against Tiger now.

    A Flying Jatt does not have much of a story. It is about a simpleton who gains super powers and a lot of footage goes into showing his prowess as he saves people in distress, from calamities as well as goons.

    The length at 151 minutes makes things repetitive while trying for a film aimed mainly at children. In the first half, some comic scenes entertain its target audience. The direction is good in general with impressive use of special effects; the effects in the song ,which also has a nice melodious feel to it, are good. Beat pe booty… is already popular and both songs are appealing. Cinematography is competent. Tiger Shroff excels in dances and action, both being his forte. Jacqueline is okay. Amrita Singh makes her presence felt, while KK Menon has little to do. Nathan Jones can’t act and his drawls are incomprehensible. The film needed to be edited extensively.

    A Flying Jatt is a passable fare with appeal for kids besides audiences in Delhi and Punjab generally. Released on Thursday to cash in on the festive mood of Janmashtami, it gets three more days to rake in the moolah over the weekend at the box office. Sustenance thereafter will be tough.

    Producers: Shobha Kapoor, Ekta Kapoor.

    Director: Remo D’Souza.

    Cast: Tiger Shroff, Jacqueline Fernandez, Amrita Singh, KK Menon, Nathan Jones and Shraddha Kapoor in a cameo.

  • Great Grand Masti….Greater disappointment!

    Great Grand Masti….Greater disappointment!

    MUMBAI: Indra Kumar acted in and made a few Gujarati films in the era of tax exemption and subsidy offered by the Gujarat government to promote Gujarati films. Indra’s forte in those days was to thrive on vulgar gestures and double meaning dialogue. It worked because Gujarati films catered mainly to a certain level of audience. He also came to be called the Dada Kondke (the legendary Marathi filmmaker) of Gujarati films. Indra directed some notable films in Hindi with top stars.

    With corporate studios calling shots and stakes gone sky-high, survival for independent filmmakers became impossible. Indra decided to go back to his Kondke style of film making starting with Masti (2004), followed by Grand Masti (2013) to now come up with the third part of his Masti series with Great Grand Masti.

    The Great Grand Masti has the same agenda as its earlier versions which is to weave a comedy around vulgarity. The male and female anatomy is the theme around which the makers plan to play. To this end, Indra lets loose his three generally out of work male characters from his earlier films, Riteish Deshmukh, Aftab Shivdasani and Vivek Oberoi. All that these three have in mind is sex 24×7. It oozes from all their actions.

    All three are married to very revealing and willing girls but all three girls carry excess baggage which keeps the trio from getting anywhere close to their spouses. Since the lads are desperate for sex and their own women are not available to them, they need to look elsewhere. They decide to embark on a village where Riteish has a palatial property to sell.

    The makers think it is time to make this film hattke from the earlier two. So the angle of paranormal is added to consolidate the comedy. This is rare because paranormal on its own has few takers in Hindi films, let alone with a blend of comedy. Last one in memory is late producer-actor Deven Verma’s Bhaago Boot Aaya, inspired from a James Hadley Chase novel, Miss Shumway Waves A Wand. But, to a disastrous results.

    In absence of a script or good gags, Indra lets his three non-actors loose on the screen as they start with trying to seduce the sexy maid, Urvashi Rautela, at the palatial house and, later, to save their lives when they realize that the maid is a ghost waiting to be seduced for the last 50 years! The hide n seek between the guys and ghost is meant to be funny but it is not and falls flat. In its 127 minute duration, the only funny scene the film has is of Viagra aftereffect which, again, has been lifted from Mel Brook’s comedy, History Of The World (1981). And, that too has been killed by stretching it too far.

    The film is a poor specimen of comedy, entertainment or whatever it may be called. Nothing works here. The performers keep to their reputation and don’t act; over two hours of buffoonery is what they resort to.

    The film is poor on all counts and has no hopes at the box office.

    Producers: Shobha Kapoor, Ekta Kapoor, Sameer Nair, Aman Gill, Ashok Thakeria, Sri Adhikari Brothers, Anand Pandit.

    Director: Indra Kumar.

    Cast: Ritesh Deshmukh, Vivek Oberoi, Aftab Shivdasani, Urvashi Rautela, Pooja Bose, Amar Saxena, Sanjay Mishra, Shreyas Talpade.