With focus on quality content, regional films pick up pace

Time and again, regional cinema has proved its might in the film industry when it has forced Bollywood to take a back seat. Be it on the home turf or in the overseas market, it is no more a one-sided game as the regional film industry is gaining prominence.

Take the example of Shu Thayu, which is setting a new benchmark for Gujarati films. With 900 shows on 212 screens, the movie collected Rs 2.52 crore in two days of its release.

Despite the limited release, Shu Thayu continued its strong momentum and collected Rs 6.51 crore within four days of release. Bollywood films that released alongside —Happy Phirr Bhag Jayegi and Genius — managed over Rs 13 crore and Rs 3 crore from 1,550 and 800 screens respectively in four days.

Another regional film that needs a special mention is Telugu romantic comedy Geetha Govindam. It remained the first choice for moviegoers in the United States and sidelined all new Indian releases and holdovers. In the US market alone, Geetha Govindam raked in over Rs 26 crore in two weeks. Worldwide, the film has done business worth Rs 93 crore.

Tamil film Kolamaavu Kokila was shining bright in key international markets and, until August, generated revenue of Rs 1.28 crore in the US, Rs 25.29 lakh in Canada, Rs 25.72 lakh in Australia and Rs 43.94 lakh in the United Kingdom.

Punjabi comedy Mar Gaye Oye Loko too saw a strong opening in August at Rs 1.8 crore.

While Bollywood is putting its best foot forward, its regional counterpart is providing quality content with commercial treatment and serving it to the audiences with local language jokes, nuances and gags that go a long way in establishing a connection with people in a particular region.

A similar trend was seen last year in the regional film space. The industry’s share in the overall domestic theatricals ranged between 45 and 50 percent last year with Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam contributing to 70 percent of regional domestic theatrical revenues, according to FICCI report ‘Media Ecosystem-The walls fall down’.

According to Rahul Puri, MD at Mukta A2 Cinemas, the contribution of key regional markets to the overall industry performance has grown by five percent in recent years. Compared to Bollywood, films from key regional markets are less city-centric.

Other regional markets such as Bengali, Punjabi, Marathi and Gujarati have been showing strong growth supported by wider releases, more multiplex release windows and stronger focus on quality content.