Mollywood is far from its golden year TOI

Mollywood is far from its golden year

Even though the revenue generated so far is higher compared to the last four years, the industry is reportedly set to incur a loss of 80 crore this year

Sanjith Sidhardhan

Mollywood filmmakers and fans have hailed 2012 as the golden year of the industry due to the increase in number of releases. However, a look at the industry's revenue statistics and expert opinions reveal that the success is only superficial, as Malayalam cinema still has a long way to go.
Latest reports show that Mollywood has had 74 film releases already; compared to just 88 through 2011. However, the fact is that only a handful of them have actually generated profits and amongst them, only six films —
Mayamohini, Ordinary, Mallu Singh, Spirit, Usthad Hotel and Thattathin Marayathu — have recovered a substantial amount and can be included in the super hit category.

STILL AT A LOSS…

Anil V Thomas, general secretary of Kerala Film Chamber of Commerce, says, "This year, we will see the release of about 120 Malayalam films, totalling to an investment of anywhere between 250-270 crore. But the hard truth is that even though the situation is better when compared to the scene over the last four years, the industry will still face a loss of approximately 80 crore."
The loss may seem a lot lesser, as the industry reportedly saw a setback of about 200 crore last year. Trade analysts point out that it still doesn't mark the beginning of a 'golden age' as far as the financial figures are concerned, especially when 85 of the 100 films released in a year don't even recover their investment.
Jose C Mundadan, president of the Kerala Film Distributors Association, points out, "This year, about 20% of the films released might break-even and go on to make profits as compared to less than 10% over the last few years. Still, that doesn't make this year a revolutionary one. There was a time in the '70s and '80s when 60% of Malayalam films ended up making a profit. That would be the ideal 'golden years'."

MORE WORK, BETTER RESULTS?

However, it doesn't mean that the industry is not witnessing a healthy trend currently. Kerala Film Producers Association president Milan Jaleel points out that because the number of films is on the rise, there is more work and, as a result, the industry is thriving too.
"Also, due to large scale anti-piracy operations and new generation themes, people are now more interested in watching films in theatres. This consequently augments the theatre revenue of a film," he says.

TOP OF THE CHARTS

Interestingly, both Mayamohini, which currently leads the box office this year with 18 crore gross, and Ordinary, which raked in an enviable 15 crore gross, saw a surge in profits as they were successful in bringing in the family
audience to the
theatres. Thattathin Marayathu, however, is expected to be this year's largest grosser, mustering profits close to 9.5 crore, mainly because it was made with a budget of under 3 crore.

WHAT'S CHANGED…

While all three experts concur that youth-oriented films have been driving the change and replacing the charm of superstar-driven movies, they also say most of the revenue loss in the
industry is happening
due to the inability
to control production cost.
Anil says, "Even the socalled new-generation flicks, sans superstars, are being produced at a 20 to 30% higher budget than what is necessary. Take for instance, Usthad Hotel, that is said to have cost above 3 crores. This is high, considering it's a film with a newcomer in the lead."
With the festive season yet to arrive and with it, some much-talked-of films, the loss margin might see a considerable decrease. But if the fifth largest film industry in the country wants to be a force to reckon with, it will have to pick up in the coming years and reclaim its box office charm. Until then, the golden age is nothing but fiction.
sanjith.sidhardhan@timesgroup.com

WE HIT THE JACKPOT: Stills from Mayamohini; (right) Usthad Hotel and (top) Ordinary