Festival favourites struggle for screen time in Indian cinemas

Titles like the recent Cannes winner All We Imagine As Light and other festival favourites such as All That Breathes, Agra, and Kennedy have found themselves in the shadows of mainstream blockbusters, highlighting the challenges these critically lauded films face in securing a theatrical release.

While that may seem like an old tale, certain shifts in the industry have made it even harder for these movies to come to a theatre near you.

Independent cinema has always had it tough in theatres, since it does not follow the song-and-dance troupe of Bollywood or feature popular faces. However, unlike the 1970s and 80s, when ticket prices in single screen cinemas were nominal and movies were still watched by all demographics, the current business model is geared towards multiplexes, where the ticket prices are way higher.

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High ticket prices is just one aspect. Unlike earlier when a so-called ‘art’ film getting into a theatre was mostly about its profit potential, today the new go-to mantra is creating a ‘buzz’, where producers necessarily need to spend a reasonable amount on marketing and promotions for films to make it to theatres.

Independent filmmakers may garner acclaim at international festivals, but often cannot afford the huge marketing and publicity spend of ₹3-4 crore to push their movies into the theatres.

“These movies fail to excite users due to inadequate marketing efforts such as trailers and advertising," said Devang Sampat, managing director, Cinepolis India. “Often made on smaller budgets, they have limited funds for promotion and advertising, which hampers their visibility and appeal to a broader audience."

Given such a scenario, experts note that in the rare cases when independent films make it to theatres, they are typically limited to fewer than 100 screens in the top metros. In contrast, big mainstream movies release in at least 3,000-4,000 screens.

Further, while OTT platforms were seen as a haven for such films initially, as the streaming platforms control their spends and attempt speaking to wider audiences, they are also playing it safe by mostly acquiring mainstream movies.

Even the smallest film typically requires at least ₹75 lakh to ₹1 crore for marketing and distribution. This can soar to ₹15-20 crore for big titles. It's the kind of money that small, niche films made on shoestring budgets simply don't have.

Given these financial constraints, independently released films often struggle to reach even the ₹1 crore mark in box office collections. On the other hand, even flop mainstream titles often settle at ₹5-6 crore.

Vadh, a 2022 thriller starring Neena Gupta and Sanjay Mishra, which had premiered at the International Film Festival of India, made ₹60 lakh when released in theatres in December 2022. In contrast, Ranveer Singh's comedy Cirkus, panned universally, earned over ₹35 crore the same month. The two films were made on budgets of ₹3 crore and ₹150 crore, respectively.

The absence of well-known actors further diminishes their chances, as audiences often rely on star power when choosing what to watch, Sampat added.

Commercial viability and societal values

Further complicating matters, India’s traditionally rooted cinema culture often reflects societal values. So, independent films, which often deal with controversial or sensitive topics, may face resistance, limiting their theatrical release.

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Trade experts point out that a film's potential to make profits plays a crucial role in its release. If a film is not deemed commercially viable, distributors and theatre owners are hesitant to invest, especially with intense competition for screen space.

"The number of screens allotted to any film is a matter of demand and supply. It does not make sense to push niche films that may not be able break even," film distributor and exhibitor Akshaye Rathi said.

Several exhibitors insist they would be open to showcasing independent films if they found distributors. However, these films often lack the backing of major distribution companies that focus on mainstream titles with known faces and operate within a close-knit network of producers.

However, there are also examples of films that have started small and grown with word-of-mouth, Rathi added, citing the example of political drama The Kashmir Files that wasn't backed by a mainstream film production house. The film made for around Rs. 15 crore, earned over Rs. 250 crore in India alone.

Film producer, trade and exhibition expert Girish Johar said a lot of these films could look at a targeted release limited to top metros of the country, but it would be hard to put even a basic marketing campaign together, including posters, social media, and so on.

“Even so-called commercial entertainers are not managing any traction nowadays. Indies are a hard sell to distributors, who may not be confident of backing them," Johar explained.

Further, producers also have to pay a virtual print fee (VPF), a cost to show their films are using digital projectors and technology supplied by digital service providers (DSPs) such as UFO Moviez and Qube Cinemas that theatre chains such as PVR Inox work with. It can cost the film producer up to ₹25,000 per screen.

“Some of these films could have taken advantage of the space in theatres in the first half of the year when there weren’t that many mainstream films releasing; it will be a lot harder in the second half," said Rahul Puri, managing director of Mukta Arts and Mukta A2 Cinemas. “But they have to overcome these bottlenecks of marketing and distribution, which is not something exhibitors can step in and fix."

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