Rani...ka kya kehna...

Behen ho toh aisi. Rani Mukerji has ensured that her brother Rajaa's Bengali film Bidhatar Lekha will finally get a proper theatrical release.

Rajaa had been having a difficult time trying to sell the film, so his star sister stepped in with some help.

According to a well-placed source, Rani pleaded Rajaa's case with Babul director Ravi Chopra and requested him to help distribute the film.

Ravi then introduced Rajaa to a Bengali distributor whose company, Venkatesh Films, paid the Mukerjis Rs 50 lakh for the film. However, despite Chopra's help, the Mukerjis are in the red.

Apparently, the cost of the movie is estimated at Rs 3.5 crore. "All the money invested in the film has come from the family kitty. There has been no outside financing at all," reveals the insider.

Adi's attitude

When Rani first realised that the film was facing trouble, she had approached Yash Raj Films. Yash and Aditya Chopra agreed to buy the film but for not more than Rs 25 lakh.

They didn't think it was feasible to buy the film at a higher price.

Says an industry source, "Rani was disappointed when she didn't get the expected response from the Yash Raj camp. She assumed that her closeness to Adi would've assured her a more favourable response."

When that didn't happen, Rani turned to Ravi Chopra who had directed her in Babul. Explaining why Bidhatar Lekha had no buyers, our source reveals, "The problem is that Rajaa went six times over the actual budget.

The Bengali film market is small and it is not good business sense to invest so heavily in a film. The returns will never match the spending.

That's the reason why Bengali films and other regional films are never shot with big budgets or sold at high prices."

Ravi Chopra, too, agrees he introduced Rani and Rajaa to Venkatesh Films. Explaining why he didn't distribute it himself, he says, "There was no possibility of me buying the film as I am not into Bengali films.

As for the amount it sold for, I have no clue what transpired between the Mukerjis and the buyer. I don't know what price they got for their film."

Speaking to us from Kolkata, Preetam Jalan (vice president, IMPAA) said that Yash Chopra had negotiated with him on behalf of Rani.

"Rani has very good relations with Mr Chopra, but I told Yashji that I cannot afford to give more than Rs 50 lakh for the film. Rajaa's father too visited my office after that.

Rajaa thought I was giving them too little money and didn't contact me after that. I have heard that he has finally sold the film to Venkatesh Films on commission basis."

Bad business

Mahendra Soni of Venkatesh Films (Kolkata) admits that he had bought Bidhatar Lekha, but says he bought it on minimum guarantee basis.

He refuses to confirm that he had paid only Rs 50 lakh for it, but stresses, "Rajaa can ask for any price. He has made the film on a lavish scale.

Rajaa was unavailable for comment, but Hrishitaa Bhatt, the film's leading lady, puts up a brave front, claiming, "Bidhatar Lekha has got the best distributor in Kolkata and there is no problem."

Preetam adds that Rajaa is releasing the film on April 14, which coincides with the release of a Bengali film starring Mithun Chakraborty, called Tul Kalam. "That is not a sound business decision.

It is like releasing a film of a smaller hero against SRK in Mumbai," he says.