Ajay Bijli: $100M movies cannot recoup costs without theatrical release
Ajay Bijli · Ep #8 | WTF is Going on in the World of Content | w/ Nikhil, Ajay Bijli, Vijay S. & Sajith S. · Nikhil Kamath · Aug 14, 2023 · at 56:28
Ajay Bijli, Managing Director of PVR INOX, discusses why major studios returned to theatrical release windows instead of premiering direct-to-streaming.
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“The awareness of the movie and this forty two billion dollars that I'm talking about and the 21 that was coming to back, coming to them can never get recouped if they go straight to streaming. So if a hundred million dollar movie gets made and you want to monetize it is best to first release it in the first window, which is theatrical.”
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More from Ajay Bijli
Bijli: Unbending actor fees after box office flops cause producers heavy losses
“Some people just didn't budge from their fee, regardless of how their previous performance was. So then the producers end up losing their shirt.”
Bijli: Taking a de-glamorized view of entertainment improves long-term outcomes
“Actually the more de-glamorized view you take of the industry, the better off. You will be in the long run.”
Bijli: Multiplexes account for 70% of India's theatrical box office revenue
“So box office wise, 70% of the revenues come from multiplexes because of a higher average ticket price.”
Bijli: Theaters work for short-form sports screenings, but long-form makes audiences restless
“I think cinemas are meant to show movies only. But definitely there are peaks and valleys. And when cricket becomes exceedingly more important than movies as well. And the short form of cricket, I've noticed people don't get restless. Any sport, short form, wh…”
Bijli: Celluloid movie prints cost ₹50,000 versus under ₹1,000 digitized
“Hindi movies used to be in these celluloid canisters, and they used to be 50,000 rupees a print. And now it's not even like thousand rupees because they're digitized.”
Bijli: South India leads cinema attendance at 12 visits per year
“South, I'm sorry, I'm clubbing the entire south into one category, but Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, Hindi, English, consumes the highest number of films. In a year, and the movie going index is also the highest, which is 12 times a year.”