Multiplex culture : Good or bad for cinema in India
“Cinema wo hai jiska ticket black mein bikta hai”.
Above mentioned catchy line was said by Javed Akhtar Saab, who has been one of the most successful screenplay writers of commercial Hindi cinema.
Following can also be said in the respect of Cinema.
”Cinema wo hai jo baar baar dekha jata hai”.
Tickets are sold in black or not, it is immaterial but a film should inspire an audience to come and see it multiple times.
We can add that ideally a large number of people, a varied audience spread in different parts of country if not world, should see a film and that is the real success of a film.
A good cinema compels audience to go and watch it again and again and each and every time he enjoys the watching.
” A large number of people are standing outside the cinema halls when a film is released“.
This should be the most cherishing moment for any director, producer, actor and member of the team which has made a film.
But two very important things are needed for any film to realise this dream.
Even if audiences have full passion for cinema they should have time and money also to pass through this experience of watching the film in first few days.
An audience. filled with full of passion towards cinema. still may not see a film again and again because of the economical constraints.
Even it can be said in today’s scenario that many true lovers of cinema can not watch the film in the very first week of its release because so many times its released only in multiplexes and single screen cinema halls situated in small cities are not given the prints.
Hindi Cine Industry should not increase economic class distinction in the society. Films like medium are not to generate frustrations among the people. If films become a biggest tool in declaring the difference between “Shining India” and “India that is not shining” then day is not far when severe repercussions will be seen in the society.
In 50s, Pt. Nehru had called Industries as modern day’s temples of modern India.Hindi films have also been able to unite the country. Once inside the theatre, everybody forgot which religion or economic class he belonged to.
There could be bit higher price for balcony area but it was understood as place for families and even youngsters belonging to well to do families, whenever they went to watch the film with friends, preferred family stalls, as this way they were able to save few Rupees which they used to spend on eating something they liked.
But came multiplex culture and watching the film became a status symbol also. With the advent of multiplexes, watching a film in a multiplex became SOMETHING. Earlier it was related more with the hobby of a person.
India is not an economically developed country like USA or Canada or many European countries where majority of people fall into the same economic zone and population is just sufficient or even less in comparison to the capacities of these countries and hence multiplex kind of cinema halls, with limited sitting capacity, came into the existence there. It was needed there because these countries have multiple mediums of entertainment also. Not a very large number of people are dependent on cinema only to get the entertainment there. So this less number of cinematic audience factor, has played a great role behind the multiplexes having limited seats and selling tickets at higher price. People spend money on museums, zoo, circus, opera, theatre, sports, fitness club and travelling etc. Purchasing power of people of developed countries is obviously more.
Nothing was wrong in making multiplexes in India also. It was very helpful if people, who spend money, were belonging to category which generally helps in promotion and progress of art. If good films are promoted this way then multiplex culture is very good but mostly multiplexes were developed on the debris of old and economical single screen cinema halls and hence their existences reduced the chances for a large number of people to watch the film in first week of its release. To watch a film in first few days has always been a thrill for people, keeping passion towards cinema. But policy of big filmmakers and distributers to release initially their films only in multiplexes has killed that adventure for masses. It has become prerogative of few chosen only, who can spend few hundreds Rupees per person to watch a film. Economic demarcation has started affecting the watching of films for audiences.
This one star, three star or five star differentiation can work beautifully in the hotel or restaurant business because one may get the fundamental things, accommodation and food, at every other place also whereever he goes. One may get a very tasty food at road side dhaba also but if tomorrow five star hotels and restaurants start affecting the vegetable market and production and selling of common vegetables and people are forced to go to five star hotels only to eat even common vegetables then we can imagine the control of market over our food life. If big films are chosen to be released in multiplexes only then their filmmakers and distributers are depriving a large section of people from getting the pleasure of seeing the film in first week.
Multiplexes are fine but not multiplex culture. This culture has brought the first weekend culture also in to the picture. Now this rush to earn maximum money over first weekend has taken the shape of an ugly competition. In the beginning things look fine but soon there may be hidden attempts to sabotage other’s films so that someone’s own film may accumulate the golden eggs of “weekend hen”. Not all people believe in fate etc and many are so strong headed that underworld may also be involved and people will start giving suparies to kill chances of others films. Soon jealous stars/ film makers/ distributers will start taking resort of ugly things to get maximum benefits.
Are films only matter of three days only? Teen din (aur raat)/ 72 hours ki dulhan? This heavy competition of early three days has made filmmakers and presenters quite dishonest also. Now they don’t feel any shame in cheating the audience by showing anything in trailers and its possible that these things are not included in the film. A trend has been taking shape where perhaps they have started thinking that a film should bring somehow some audience into the cinema halls, who cares what they think after. Once they spend few hundred rupees, then they may go to hell.
Hindi cine Industry is doing what a foolish man does. Distributers are cutting same branch of the tree on which they are sitting.
Producers may be happy that they can generate more money from 100 people in a multiplex and they can’t generate same amount of money from a single screen theatre from 1000 viewers. But they are not able to see that these 100 people who initially happily pay Rs 250 for a film also start getting frustration on the quality of products they are getting against the money they spend.
Considering audiences have started reacting harshly against the films, they have watched on first weekend of their releases, it can be said safely that now films have become products for them and they want full and positive response from a film on which they have spent more than 150 (sometimes 250) Rupees and when its about a family of, say, four members, then one film may cost them close to 1000 Rupees which include their conveyance and eating etc also.
Amount of 1000 Rupees still does not count less and salaried class people cry aloud when government raises the rate of gas cylinders as that increases their budget fixed for the kitchen. And facts remain that even if a gas cylinder costs rupees 500 for them, it can be used for many days to cook food for whole family and its not merely a “Show teen ghanton ka”. While watching a film in a multiplex means a good sum of money has been spent and it buys the usability only for the 2-2.5 hours.
Young audiences, (working class) who are financially capable to watch all the films in multiplex, initially can spend this money till they are alone or watching cinema in multiplex serves some purpose for them but ultimately roots of majority of them also come from middle class and sometimes from lower middle class and sooner or later they have to object on high price and many of them object now also.
Even if an audience is ready to spend Rs 200 on a film then how many films can be seen by him in a month? During festival time like Diwali occasion, 4-5 big films will be released, is it fair to expect an audience to spend more than Rs 1000 on films only?
A passionate cine lover would like to watch most of the films he wants to see but economics will definitely affect his desire and thus decision also and he may decide not to watch all the films or he may decide to watch a film only once which he has liked immensely because higher price of ticket is compelling him to do so.
So higher cost of ticket defintely affects the cinema especially in the economy of India like developing countries.
People did not abuse films and their makers in 1980s after watching them as they did it after watching some films released in last 2-3 years. When one is spending Rs 250 on a film then film is not seen as mere film only and then it becomes a product and watcher becomes a consumer and as a consumer he feels that he has certain rights. He thinks he needs a good quality product and worst thing is this that he decides the quality. Though he may not be knowing much about cinema but he may call a film as crap because it did not bring him “SOMETHING” which he was looking in it.
Now this “SOMETHING” will always remain an elusive link between the audience and film.
Worst kind of films were made in 80s but that was the time when people used to say after getting pleasure from a song sequence or some great scene that Paisa wasool ho gaya. Because audience paid a reasonable amount to buy a ticket to watch the film
So films at reasonable ticket prices provokes audience to watch the film and search the merits while films at higher ticket prices force audience to look for negatives because now they are buying a costly product and they have to behave like consumers.
A person spending Rs 30-40-50 on an average film will come out as a happy man as he may get some entertainment against that reasonable price he has spent on the film.
Moreover now young people are able to see the world outside of the country also and films having shooting at foreign locales may not appeal to them anymore and products given to them at such a high price may bring frustration to them.
Higher prices are harming the future of good films also. and people need bettwer facilitated cinema halls and not five star cinema halls. There can be five star cinema halls also but then there should exist one star cinema halls also and all the films should be released there also for masses.
And what kind of economic policy is this? Big Films are not released in small and old cities having old cinema halls with single screen only and they are mostly left with dubbed “A” certified films.
Cinema halls of small cities are left available to screen cheap films as they have to run the films so people making garbage or soft porn or irresponsible films have occupied that segment of market and time will come soon when these filmmakers will start saying people want to see garbage so we are giving them the same.
If small cities are left with the kind of films with title Nashili Jawani, Charthee Jawani etc etc and whole lot of younger minds are getting polluted then tomorrow is not very bright. And what a polluted mind will seek? A sane mind can understand difference between real life and illusioned life but a polluted mind can not.
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Continued-
Filed Under
Movies, Thoughts , hindi cinema, Indian Cinema, Jhoom Barabar Jhoom, Multiplex, Pt Nehru, Single Screen
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21 Responses to “Multiplex culture : Good or bad for cinema in India”
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Javed Akhtar’s lines “Cinema wo hai jiska ticket black mein bikta hai” will not hold true in this dat and age.
According to me:”Cinema wohi hai jo aap baar baar dekhte hain”
Probably Drona’s tickets were also sold in black.
Cinema wo hai jiski koi jubilee hoti hai
completely agree RK sahib … the restaurant analogy hit the nail on the head …
it was a normal weekend day and me with a friend of mine had a few hours to kill (which is why we had thought we will see Kidnap) …
guess the ticket price ? 200 bucks per head …and that too front row stal !!!
ru kidding me ???? 200 bucks to kill time that too on kidnap ??
thank god i didnt watch the film
Wonderful article.I agree with you on most points.
Being a young, working professional with very little resposibilities, i must say that multiplexes suit me very well.The reason i prefer watching movies in a multiplexes is because of the good quality of the screens, sound system etc.
However, in spite of being able to afford watching movies regularly in a multiplex, i must say that paying 250 bucks a ticket for any movie,is nothing but daylight-robbery. Unless ofcourse, the film happens to be a Godfather or a Citizen Kane. There have been times when i’m short of cash and am forced to watch the very first show
in the multiplex as the tickets are least expensive for that show.
I do however have some serious reservations about single screen theatres. On the few occasions where i’ve been forced to watch movies in a single screen theatre, mainly due to unavailibity of tickets in a multiplex, i’ve never enjoyed the experience. And this is primarily due to the barrage of nonsensical comments that i’ve been forced to endure during the screening of the movie, mostly from the people sitting in the front rows. I mean, i know that everybody has a right to enjoy himself but not at the cost of disturbing others. On the rare occasions that this happens in a multiplex, i can be rest assured that the particular individual will be roughed up by the multiplex staff so that he does not repeat it again.
Also, I feel that the main positive of multiplexes is that it has given a chance to a small budget, but offbeat cinema that would have otherwise dies a slow death.
RK, in some ways multiplexes have been good, at least down South, i have seen that their entry has made some of the well known single screen theaters upgrade their standards. In my hometown, Vizag itself, i had known one theater, which used to be a really stuffy place, full of mosquitoes and stinking, but recently when i had been to my hometown, i watched couple of movies in the same theater, and its totally changed, with air conditioning, comfortable seats, holders for cool drinks etc.
And that is what i am really hoping for. That if the single screen theaters can upgrade their standards, and the prices are reasonable, it would really be a good experience, and no it would not cut off people either. For eg, if earlier the highest ticket in an A/C theater with a good sound system would be 30, now it is 60, and an average movie goer would not mind that.
Also down South, we really have some of the best theaters, and not just in metroes like Hyderabad, Bangalore or Chennai, but even smaller cities like Kochi, Vizag, Mysore, Mangalore, Coimbatore. So not many are really enthused about paying Rs 250 for a ticket.
Same here,Before Adlabs opened up its multiplex here,we had to be content with movies releasing 2-3 weeks late that too in theatres where the seats were torn and the fans never worked ;),personally i just wish that these single screen theatres just revamped themselves a bit,i mean,air-conditioning and better sound,it’d be perfect because it is insanity paying 150 bucks to watch a movie every week
“Nashili Jawani, Charthee Jawani”
….i don’t care about what u hv written
…HOW DARE YOU insult our c-grade cinema
….its truly the underground cinema of the country
…..have u ever been to essel studio
…ofcourse u have not been to KHATMAL protected theaters to see these movies….otherwise u wont say such stupid names like Nashili Jawani, Charthee Jawani
by the way younger minds will always find a way to be what u call “polluted”…..& i hope they hv the freedom to do so….but ya they will actualy be polluted seeing the
a-grade realses……
@Saurav,
with price of ticket going above Rs 200, its already a black marketing of cinema tickets though it has got a legal cover.
@Kcp,
Sir wo din ab gaye jab jubili hua kartee thee.
ab two weeks means Golden jubili.
now its matter of first 4 days.:)
@Kartik,
More than Rs 100.00 per ticket is selling tickets at exorbitant price.
Its not good for cinema. atleast in India.
@Raunak,
Yes cinema halls should have good infra structure so that audience may enjoy the experience of watching the film there.
Single screen cinema halls need improvement in facilities and multiplexes need to reduce the price and that will create a tough competition among single screen and multiplex.
Now they have become two separate world and thats not good for cinema’s growth.
@Ratnakar,
No problem with Multiplexes but problems lie with multiplex culture.
Good Facilities and good conditions of cinema halls should definitely be there.
Multiplex means - good facility.
Multiplex culture means- control on the market of cinema like in older times black marketers used to do with food grains etc. A rationing.
Multiplex cuture does not follow the trends and traits of free market policies and that is something serious.
@Vikram,
To keep cinema halls in bad contions is also belong to ill mentallity of buisnessman. Earlier they knew that people have to come to watch the films here so keep cinema halls in any condition. and same is happening with Multiplexes also.
When Multiplexes can run a show with 10-15 audiences also ( say they sold ticket per head at Rs 150) so 10 audiences gave them Rs 1500 only for a show.
We make an average cost and say Rs 5000 per show is a good income in such cases.
Reasonable price may allure those audience also who decide not to watch the film because tickets are costly.
Multiplexes are not something like introduction of New Technologies so that owners may keep a profit of 200% on the investment. There should be some feasible and reasonable pricing policy.
@Anshul,
Good for you if your mind is polluted by watching A-grade releases.
Though its bit strange but
To each his own.
Best of luck.
Hi Rk
Liked the article…i really feel that soon end time will come for single theatre. Once upon a time an area called majestic in bangalore used to have 20-22 single theatres showing almost all languages but now they are reduced to half. half have shutdown and converted into shopping mall. Multiplex have taken over them. Also there is no fixed pricing of tkts in bangalore..weekeday diff price, weekend diff price sometime reached 250-300 per head. In some way i liked chennai, as atleast there is max price limit of Rs 120 in a good multiplex irrespective of the day.
@Prashant,
Multiplex culture is strange. Even a levish shopping mall does not increase the rates of the products sold there in such a proportion as these Multiplexes are doing with Cinema.
Thats right, highest ticket price should be fixed by government and below this Multiplexes can play with different rates for different days. Thats their marketing skills, how they attract different audiences on different days.
Different states follow different levels of ENTERTAINMENT TAX and many states impose more tax on the films belonging to different language so a Hindi film may pay more entertainment tax in Tamilnadu because regional language films are given protection and preference there. This is good.
But now Entertainment tax is not as high as it used to be till early 80s when at some places it was more than 80% and cinema hall owners, distributers and producers were still earning the profit and now when entertainment tax is notwhere more than 50%, all are crying though in reality most of the films earn profit now, if not from initial realse in cinema halls than by selling from satellite rights, Telecast on TV, DVD rights and then music sale is always an additional income.
Complete privatization and that too uncontrolled one, is never good especially in India like society. Some govt. control is needed else these businessmen will sell the soul of any area because their spirit lies in profit only, come what may, they need maximum profit.
and Pity thing is this that filmmaker.i.e, director has no say in this whole commercial part of the cinema. Very good films can be sabotaged by people controlling the business side of cinema.
But situations are never same.
I have been witnessing many audiences who were watching films with hapiness in the initial phase of Multiplex as it was matching with luxurious life style of people but slowly they have been getting disillusion and now they dont watch every film they wish to and wait for DVD or its telecast on cable TV, and only some incentives allure them for some films.
This conflict between audience’s economic limitations and people controlling the commercial aspects of cinema will bring an average.
Transition phases are always tough to pass.
i once entered in a multiplex
coming out of it
i swear never to enter again
.
i detest nothing more than stiff upper lip
.
with a single screen theater
there is a emotional connection
between audience and the cinema
.
a single screen theater is a collective experience
like a marriage ceremony
where the comments from viewer are as much part of the experience
as the dialouges of the movie
.
in a multiplex
you are on your own
.
multiplex makes movies a product
and viewer a consumer
.
viewer feel embarrassed connecting emotionally with the movie
.
every product has a life
if bollywood breakes the emotional connection with its viewers
than like any other product
it will be thrown out someday
.
hollywood is well on its way of decadence
.
i wonder how the same demography that is feasting on tv series heroes
can tolerate the crap churned out by hollywood
.
there is no longer any novelty in hollywood
because it has become pure business
no art
.
movies are made for moolah
not for passion of story telling
or urge to create something
.
that is the saving grace of bollywood
the passion is still burning
and it should be guarded by all means
from cold clutches of greed
.
otherwise
ye public hai
ye sab janati hai
Well i would support the idea of multiplexes coming in hoards though dont know whether it should be termed as a multiples-culture. In a population of 100bn people saying some 17000 multiplex screen can make a culture is a narrow thinking.
I would like to have more number of them as at the end consumer/movie lovers would be benefitted out of healthy not a cheap or immoral competition.