Adding silver back to screen

A handful of people and companies are trying to script a turnaround story for the movie business through bold, out-of-the-box decisions

- VANITA KOHLI-KHANDEKAR

RS Prasanna's Sitaare Zameen Par is a heartwarming film — not just cinematically. Its success, following the decision of its producer, Aamir Khan Production (AKPL), to hold back on any OTT deal till the movie has had a full run in theatres, has brought hope and cheer to the Indian film industry.

With this move, actor Aamir Khan, who owns AKPL, has bucked the trend wherein most large production houses release a film only after stitching an OTT deal. This helps them recover costs — and even make a small profit — before the film even hits theatres.

This is because of "the release window between theatre and streaming," says Yusuf Galabhaiwala, director-operations of Galalite Screens, a Mumbai-based screen-making firm. The shorter the window, usually 2-6 weeks, the less likely it is that audiences will walk into the theatre to see a small- or medium-budget film such as 12th Fail or Laapataa Ladies, which is more about the story than about star power or histrionics, à la Pushpa 2.

With Sitaare Zameen Par, which hit theatres on June 20, Aamir Khan, who has been critical of the short window between a film's theatrical and OTT release, has put his money where his mouth is.

Another person who has taken it upon himself to help turn the industry's fortunes around is SVF Entertainment's cofounder Mahendra Soni.