Respect moviegoers' time, money to wriggle out of red

EXORBITANTLY-spiked ticket prices, OTT platforms and skyrocketing production costs, including the whopping remunerations to lead actors, hit the Telugu movie industry very hard in the recent past.

The industry has been embattled with multiple challenges surrounding it crippling it financially and denting it severely. Against this background, the industry elders and industry bodies of the Telugu tinsel town have embarked on corrective measures to set the house in order.

The three major problems rattling the movie world are the soaring ticket prices, OTT platforms and the ever-escalating production costs as mentioned earlier. The Telangana Film Chamber of Commerce is already proposing a new set of ticket prices to entice more audiences to the theatres. Apart from this, they are also planning to hold discussions with other producers and OTT platforms to stretch the gap between the release of a film in theatres and on OTTs.

The high remuneration of star heroes is a problem that is discussed by producers ina hushed tone so far. Lower occupancy at theatres is troublesome for the producers as they incur huge losses. The OTT platforms want to release the films with less window period, killing the theatrical business.

A couple of days ago, 'Active Telugu Producers Guild' announced, through a press note, that the shootings of all the movies would be stopped from August 1. Usually, different unions working with the film industry go on a strike but this time, shocking everyone, the producers themselves are on a warpath deciding to stop the shootings.

"All members of the Guild have voluntarily decided to withhold shootings from August 1 and hold discussions until we find a workable solution," read the press note.

Looks like, the Tollywood producers are on a mission!

Committees were formed to discuss the production costs, theatrical releases, exhibition issues, and film releases on OTT.

What's the need of the hour?

The producers need to have the realization that their 'failure to contain the escalating costs' is the chief reason for the crisis and checking the costs is indeed the need of the hour. Filmmakers can make one medium budget film and two small budget films with an amount equal to the remuneration that a star hero is currently charging.

Not always it works, if the producers hike the remuneration of actors and directors brandishing their pan-India labels and look to put the burden on the cinemagoer. The budgets must come down. That's the mantra. If the budgets and remunerations are scaled down, the distributors and exhibitors will be in a safe zone as the films will be sold for reasonable prices.

On the other hand, the OTT platforms have already made movie buffs comfortable in their homes. They are dishing out a wide variety of content every week for a price that they will shell out to watch one Telugu film in theatres.

The producers should have a reality-check over the same and then decrease the prices of movie tickets and focus on improving the footfalls in theatres. Blaming the OTT platforms will not solve issues confronting them. Instead, working with them to understand the audience's interests will bring back the glory to the cinema business.

Not every movie is a pan-India film

Tollywood should make pan-India films but not every Telugu film can become a pan-Indian flick. The Telugu audience are always ready to welcome good content in theatres or on the OTT platforms. So, it is essential to understand the viewers and respect their time and money.

In a positive sign, there are reports suggesting that Megastar Chiranjeevi, Jr NTR, Allu Arjun, and Ram Charan have agreed to cut down their remunerations and cooperate with the producers. They are also in talks with other actors. Once the stars slash their remunerations, that will ease the burden on the producers.

Ultimately, the producers may arrive at a practical solution for cost issues but bringing back the audiences to theatres will still be a tough task. For that, the filmmakers should deliver engaging content and work with the OTT platforms for a mutually viable solution where the theatres and OTT can have a win-win situation.

A meeting was held with the Telugu Film Chamber of Commerce representatives on Wednesday, where all the members echoed the same sentiments as those of the active film producers.

One more meeting will be held on July 30 with the film industry representatives from both Telugu states to discuss the concerns. A general body meeting of the Telugu Film Chamber of Commerce will also be held on July 31.

C Kalyan, the Telugu Film Producers Council president, is working on bringing a workable solution before August 1 so that the shootings will continue without being hampered.

All the Active Producers and the representatives of the film industry from Telugu states will be discussing the above concerns to ensure the smooth functioning of the film industry.

We have to wait for more days to witness Tollywood's full glory!