Syed Firdaus Ashraf | May 02, 2006 19:57 IST
Rang De Basanti seems to be courting controversy as
much as it has courted movie buffs.
The first controversy was sparked off when the Animal
Welfare Board's protestation led to a week's delay in
the film's release.
The second controversy erupted when Kavita Gadgil --
mother of an Indian Air Force pilot Abhijeet Gadgil
who was killed when his plane crashed -- objected to
its release as the producers did not first show her
the film that was loosely based on her son's life.
Now, a newspaper advertisement is creating a new
controversy.
United Television (UTV), the film's producer, has
released a newspaper ad which claims that Rang De
Basanti is the second biggest hit in the last ten
years, and has collected nearly Rs 50 crore (Rs 500
million) in revenues in the Indian market, just behind
the Sunny Deol blockbuster Gadar-Ek Prem Katha, the
biggest Bollywood hit in a decade.
The advertisement claimed that RDB was way ahead in
terms of revenues compared to other hits like Dilwale
Dulhaniya Le Jayenge, Lagaan, Koi... Mil Gaya, Kuchh
Kuchh Hota Hai, and many others.
UTV's assertion has opened a Pandora's Box, with many
a Bollywood producer and trade analyst wondering how
such claims could be made without proper validation.
Speaking to rediff.com, UTV Chairman Ronnie Screwvala
said, "To the best of my knowledge, nobody has
complained to me about this advertisement. I think it
is only the media that is playing up this issue."
RDB's overseas collection too was encouraging as it
grossed $5million (Rs 22.5 crore) in a month's time
since its release, behind Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Ghum
that grossed $8 million (Rs 36 crore).
Rumour in the film industry has it that big Bollywood
producers like Karan Johar, Yash Chopra and Rakesh
Roshan are upset over the advertisement. . . so much
so that they are planning to demand an apology from
UTV.
However, Screwvala dismissed these rumours, saying
there is not an iota of truth in it.
"If somebody had a problem they could have called me
and complained, but no one has so far," added
Screwvala.
Trade pundits too have been taken back by UTV's tall
claims: they feel there is no way the film could have
grossed Rs 50 crore in such a short period of time
after its release in the last week of January.
Taran Adarsh, a well-known film trade analyst, said:
"I don't know how UTV has come out with such figures.
There has to be some concrete proof to their claims,
but we don't find it (in the advertisement). We don't
know how the film did in markets like Bihar and
interiors of India. I feel these figures are
exaggerated."
"Do not degrade other films like Dilwale Dulhaniya Le
Jayenge, Kuchh Kuchh Hota Hai and Gadar by publishing
such statements. Ten years ago, watching films like
DDLJ was inexpensive. So, I think it is wrong to
compare."
Meanwhile, UTV -- which is a listed company -- is
having a good time. Even the stock market has taken a
fancy for the UTV scrip. The price of the UTV scrip
has risen by nearly 40 per cent in the last three
months, after RDB hit the theatres.
In his press statement to investors, Screwvala said,
"RDB was released to packed houses and is rated as the
biggest blockbusters of all time. RDB continues its
successful run and we see value in its future
exploitation."
On January 25, 2006, a day before RDB was released,
the UTV stock price was Rs 180.75. On May 3, 2006, it
had touched a high of Rs 250.
One can argue that since the stock market is
witnessing a strong Bull Run, the UTV stock too is
riding the wave. But when you compare the UTV scrip
price with that of stocks of other listed film
companies -- like Balaji Telefilms, Mukta Arts,
Pritish Nandy Communications, and TIPS -- you find
that these firms have not really performed as well as
UTV.
The Balaji Telefilms stock rose by 16.5 per cent in
the last three months, while Mukta Arts rose by 17 per
cent. PNC showed an appreciation of only 3 per cent,
and the TIPS price actually fell by 14 per cent.
UTV showed 67 per cent year-on-year growth in revenues
for the quarter ended March 2006. However, the y-o-y
net profit of the company fell by 21 per cent to Rs
6.6 crore (Rs 66 million).
Vinod Mirani, another film trade analyst, said: "One
can never give the exact picture of how much money RDB
has made in India. Somebody will have to sit and talk
to each distributor on how much money he paid to buy
the film and how much he earned from the film."
Asked to guess what the final collection figure for
RDB would be, Mirani said, "I feel it cannot be more
than Rs 35 crore (Rs 350 million)."
--Rediff.com
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