Surrounded by all the glamour and glitter, Bollywood is known
for its 3 hour-long movies packed with drama, emotion, action, romance and a
complete playlist of songs.
The mainstream Bollywood movies are loved by the audience not only in India but all over the world. In 2014, films featuring mega stars
such as Aamir Khan in PK and Hrithik Roshan in Bang Bang together marked box
office collection of Rs 500 crore in Indian market. Total theatrical revenue collection
in 2014 was Rs 2,753.78 crores. (Source: Times of India and Business Standard)
However, 2015 did not really look the same. There was a dramatic fall
of 6.7% in the total revenue collection that dropped to Rs.
2,567.98 crores. The major reason for this was the evolving mindset of movie
goers. Viewers are now more “content-conscious”. PR and marketing has played a
vital role in getting audiences to the multiplexes; however that seems to be changing slowly. While some opt for no-brainer flicks like Prem Ratan Dhan
Paayo, the other set of movie buffs crave for sensible and impactful cinema. The
latter part of the audience spends somewhere between Rs. 250 – Rs. 800 to watch a film that
has a solid story line, cinematic appeal and obviously acting, which seems to be
missing in most typical popcorn flicks.
In 2015, Bollywood box office saw that medium and low budget
movies attracted more audiences to the box office while those with extensive PR
and marketing gimmicks could not shake it up. The likes of Tanu Weds Manu Returns (Rs. 152 cr),
Piku (Rs. 80 cr), Pyaar ka Punchnama 2 (Rs. 60 cr), ABCD 2 (Rs. 105 cr) and Badlapur
(Rs. 50 cr) gained more profits than anticipated. During this year, it was seen that content- driven movies were loved by the audience as sequels of such movies saw immense success at the box office. Tanu weds
Manu Returns, ABCD 2, Pyaar ka Punchnama 2 and Welcome Back were a hit and were
able to drag audience to the theatres. Movies like Bajrangi Bhaijaan, Prem Ratan Dhan Payo, Bajirao Mastani, Dilwale and Dil Dhadakne Do did exceptionally well in worldwide box office. Six multi-starrer movies crossed the Rs. 100 crore mark and two crossed the Rs. 200 crore mark, and in case of 2014, 9 movies had a collection above 100 crore mark.
This steady transformation from trashy and highly publicized
cinema to well-crafted work of cinematic art is quickly catching up with the audiences.
This is undoubtedly a big change that was witnessed in 2015 and hopefully
continues in 2016 and beyond.
In 2016, with the success of Akshay Kumar starrer Airlift and Sonam Kapoor’s Neerja, it is evident that content-centric movies are being appreciated and rewarded while no-brainers are being trashed and thrown out of the window by the audience. Sensible content is truly proving to be the King and we sincerely hope, we get to watch more such films this year.
HAPPY MOVIE ‘ING’ PEOPLE!
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