AskIndicine: Live Question and Answers at 1PM

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The much-requested AskIndicine begins at 1PM today.

We will answer 10 questions from readers.

Q. Ready (2011) with 1.84 cr footfalls is a Blockbuster , while Devdas (2002) with 2.06 cr footfalls is a Superhit? Why is that so? – The Phenom

A. Verdicts are not based on footfalls, but the return on investment. Back in 2002 when Devdas released, it was the costliest film ever produced at a budget of around 45-50 crore. The film just about recovered its investment. On the other hand, Ready which released almost 10 years later, had costs of around 60 crore and did more than 2 times the business.  No comparison really, Ready was a much bigger blockbuster.

Q. Do you think Akshay should come with a high budget action thriller movie with top notch production values to get his multiplex audience at big cities back? Even though it is risky as these sort of movies have always been panned by critics in the past but still like Ajay is coming with Shivaay,he can try it at least.His medium budget films like Singh is bliing,Gabbar they don’t look movies worth watching in cinemas unlike Khans or Roshan movies - Kshitij

A. Akshay Kumar is one of the biggest success stories in the industry. He has nothing left to achieve or prove, and after more than 23 years in the industry, he knows what’s best for him. From a business point of view, he could cut down on the number of films that he does, which would give the audience time to wait for his next film and also producers to invest more on his films. The problem in today’s times, due to high ticket prices at multiplexes, is that the audience is unwilling to come out in big numbers if a film doesn’t have high production values. Almost all Akshay films this year, with the only exception being Brothers, have been lacking when it comes to scale. Brothers was a sure-shot success if not for the poor content. The entire package – content, scale, music, big stars.. is what brings the audience to theatres in its first weekend.

Q. Can Dilwale beat Bajrangi Bhaijaan in india and Overseas – Raj

A. It’s one of the most asked questions here, but such questions are impossible to answer. Bajrangi Bhaijaan did 320 crore in India because of its content. Salman or Shah Rukh are both equally capable of bringing audiences in hordes to theatres in the first weekend, but after that it all comes down to the content. For Dilwale there is an added factor of the big clash with Bajirao Mastani, which makes it even more difficult as the business gets divided. One positive is, historically, because of the number of holidays, the Christmas weekend has been bigger than Eid. So if Dilwale carries the same appreciation as Bajrangi Bhaijaan did, it has an outside chance to beat the film. Having said that, box office is extremely unpredictable. Let’s wait and watch.

Q. How much Pyaar Ka Punchnama 2 needs to collect for gaining Super Hit and Blockbuster verdicts? – Sambuddha

A. Pyaar Ka Punchnama was made on a budget of Rs 19 crore (including P&A). It’s already a clean hit at the box office and should end with net box office collections of Rs 55-60 crore or maybe even more, giving it Super Hit status.

Q. Would Chennai Express, Krrish 3, Dhoom 3 & PK be highest grosser if they released during non-festive weekends? – Pokemon

A. Christmas, Diwali and Eid are big because some of the most bankable superstars in the industry, release their big budget films during this period. Otherwise, there really isn’t a big difference between releasing a film during Eid and Independence Day weekend. For example, the ticket prices of Brothers was as high as Bajrangi Bhaijaan. The screen count (release size) was a little smaller for Brothers, but that’s only because Salman Khan commands a bigger followings, especially at smaller centres, which ensures that his films get a wider release. If Bajrangi Bhaijaan released on August 14th this year, it would have still collected close to what it did during Eid. October 2nd is also a huge weekend, if Diwali doesn’t fall in the same month. Films have also performed well during the Post IPL period. Ready, Rowdy Rathore, Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani and Tanu Weds Manu Returns have performed exceedingly well during that period. So to answer your question, yes, all those films would have done still performed very well. The difference wouldn’t have been much more than 15 – 20%.

Q. With good content movies like RAEES and FAN, can SRK will get his no. 1 position in overseas again? – Mayur

A. And who says those are ‘good content’ movies, when they haven’t even released? Let them release first. Just doing a different film, doesn’t ensure good content. A lot of things have to fall in place for a film to be received well by the audience.

Q. After seeing the beautiful song and massive trailer of Bajirao Mastani can we safely say that it will easily beat Dilwale this Christmas? – Siraj

A. Both the teaser and song promo of Bajirao Mastani has received a mixed response. The film isn’t carrying the hype that a big film like Bajirao Mastani should, which has already worried its investors. The makers would be hoping that the theatrical trailer (which is expected to be out soon) and the music get a good response. This would ensure that Bajirao Mastani can atleast match upto the might of Dilwale. It’s a forgone conclusion that Dilwale will take a bigger opener, how much bigger, is something that remains to be seen. Raees vs Sultan is a battle of equals, not Bajirao Mastani vs Dilwale.

Q. Why are producers obsessed about opening? Even with mediocre opening films can earn huge money lifetime. Why isn’t the focus more on ‘content’? – gj007

A. Filmmaking is a long and difficult process. No one knows what works and what doesn’t. If they did, films wouldn’t flop at the box office. Sometimes, even a film that has a solid script, can go wrong during the production and post production stage. If the casting isn’t right, if the actors don’t perform well, if the director doesn’t execute the script as well as he should, budget constraints, bad music etc. Even difference of opinion between the director, producer, actors.. can make a big difference to the final outcome. Only if everything falls into place, do we get a classic. And even classics like Andaaz Apna Apna didn’t work at the box office. Finally, there is nothing like good or bad content. Anything that works with the majority is perceived to be good content. There are quite a few people who did not like Bajrangi Bhaijaan, PK, Chennai Express or even 3 Idiots.  For them, those films did not have good content. So since no one knows what’s good or bad, what works and what doesn’t, a lot of energy is spent on ensuring that films are packaged and marketing well, which should ensure at least a good initial at the box office. When films get a good initial, good films make a lot of money, average films do well enough to earn some money and bad films end up recovering investment. Otherwise, the fate of bad films (Shaandaar being the most recent example) is sealed in the first two days itself.

Due to huge traffic, we are facing some technical issues. The QnA session has been delayed by one hour. We will start updating this page at 2:30PM. Sorry for the inconvenience.