By Taran Adarsh, IndiaFM

It started

with JURASSIC PARK [1993]. Later, TITANIC [1997], ANACONDA [1997],

GODZILLA [1998], THE MUMMY [1999], SPIDER-MAN [2002], SPIDER-MAN 2

[2004], HARRY POTTER AND THE GOBLET OF FIRE [2005] and KING KONG [2005]

posed a threat to Hindi films during their premiere release. In fact,

almost every Hindi film in the orbit got eclipsed by their

presence.

This week, something similar occurred when CASINO ROYALE, the new

James Bond film, thrashed its oppositions in the Indian market.

Barring VIVAH, practically all Hindi films, including the three new

releases [REHGUZAR, JANANI, UNNS], were affected by the stupendous

start of the new Bond thriller. I haven't come across a single person

who has disliked the new Bond film. The international press as well as

the Indian media has showered the film with glowing reviews. And the

exuberant praise translated into superb collections all through the

weekend.

Sony Pictures, the Hollywood studio that has distributed the Bond

film worldwide, has sent a note to this writer about its business in

India, which I want to share with the readers…

CASINO ROYALE opened across 452 screens on 427 prints, to a huge Rs.

14.94 crores at the box-office [17th-19th November]. This phenomenal 3

-day opening has set new benchmarks for foreign films in India:-

* Best opening weekend performance for a foreign film in India,

surpassing SPIDER-MAN 2's Rs. 7.8 crores at the box-office. A whopping

92% more!

* Largest opening day for any foreign film in India [Friday,

Nov. 17] -- Rs. 4.74 crores.

* Highest single-day collection ever for a foreign film in India

-- Rs. 5.2 crores on Sunday.

* Biggest / Widest ever release for any foreign film in India --

427 prints and 452 screens, shattering the previous record holder,

SPIDER-MAN 2's 327 screens and 304 prints.

* Fastest foreign film in India to cross Rs. 10 crore mark in

just 3 days.

The Hollywood studios have realized that India is a strong market and

dubbing a keenly-looked-forward-to film in Hindi, Tamil and Telugu

versions makes wise business sense. In any case, the investment of the

Hollywood studios is limited to the dubbing and promotion expenses and

if the domestic buyers lap it up [the Indian distributors acquired

CASINO ROYALE for fantastic prices], the studios end up making a cool

profit at the end of the day.

In this case, James Bond ne naam bhi kamaya aur daam bhi. What else

do you want?

THE 'SUN' SHINES AGAIN!

Rajshri and Yash Raj are two production/distribution houses that

command tremendous respect in the industry thanks to their path-

breaking strategies. With VIVAH, Rajshri has bounced back with renewed

vigor. But did they ever falter post MAINE PYAR KIYA? HUM AAPKE HAIN

KOUN continues to be one of the biggest money spinners of Hindi cinema.

HUM SAATH-SAATH HAIN was a big hit too. MAIN PREM KI DIWANI HOON was

written off, but do people know that Rajshri made a neat profit on this

one too? Goes to prove yet again that what eventually matters are not

hollow praises/star ratings in reviews, but the box-office collections.

And Rajshri's balance sheet continues to be rosy, very rosy!

Yes, HUM PYAR TUMHI SE KAR BAITHE and UUF KYA JAADOO MOHABBAT HAI…!,

both directed by 'outsiders', didn't work. So what? VIVAH, a low cost

enterprise, should rake in whopping profits for the premier production

house. The second week figures are as strong [at some places, better]

than the first week. The film continues to be in great shape

everywhere.

Suraj re, jalte rehna!

THIS WEEK IN 2005
[Weekend: November 18-20, 2005]

Friday, November 18 witnessed the clash of the Khan brothers. The

aggressively-publicized Feroz-Fardeen Khan starrer EK KHILADI EK

HASEENA and Akbar Khan's lavish historical TAJ MAHAL opened on the same

date worldwide, but it was a third film altogether -- HARRY POTTER AND

THE GOBLET OF FIRE -- which opened to a far better response than the

two Hindi films, eclipsing the business of the two Hindi films in many

circuits. In fact, the collections of the dubbed Hindi version were

also far better than those of all Hindi releases, new and old, at

several stations.

Surprised, aren't you? So was the film industry when they realized

that HARRY POTTER AND THE GOBLET OF FIRE [rated as the best movie in

the franchise thus far] had embarked on a 90% + start at many screens,

while EK KHILADI EK HASEENA was off to a 25%-30% start and TAJ MAHAL

was around 10%-15%.

THIS WEEK IN 2004
[Weekend: November 19-21, 2004]

With the industry witnessing no major release, the beneficiaries of

an open week were VEER-ZAARA, AITRAAZ and MUGHAL-E-AZAM. Despite mixed

reports, VEER-ZAARA continued to hold sway in the second week. The

matinee shows were affected at some places, but the business, at most

places, was in the range of 85% +, which is exceptional considering the

number of prints in circulation and the exorbitant ticket rates.

MUGHAL-E-AZAM had emerged a success story as well, with the

evergreen epic going from strength to strength. The number of prints in

the second week had been increased, which also indicated the confidence

its distributors had in this classic.

AITRAAZ continued its moderate march with 70% collections at

multiplexes and according to at least two multiplexes, the weekend in

the third week was expected to be strong as well. Moviegoers in metros,

especially the youth, were patronizing the film.

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