‘Should be a dynamic model’
How was the response to National Cinema Day? In response to this question Yogesh Raizada, Vice President, Wave Cinemas says, “Inspired by the National Cinema Day celebrated in Hollywood in the past, cinema people in India have also taken the initiative to show the audience cheap in the form of National Cinema Day. Looking at the bumper response it has received, discussions are going on in the cinema industry whether this experiment of selling cheap tickets can be tried every month or even every week. But there is also a demand from the audience and the film industry to reduce the price of tickets forever? In response, Yogesh says, ‘It is believed in the cinema business that if 35-40 percent of the audience comes to the cinema, then our expenses are covered. But after the opening of cinema after Corona, we remained in profit during the release of very few films. Sometimes we have to run shows in cinemas with 5-10 per cent of the audience. It is generally believed that there are 10-12 films in a year, from which we get 60-70 per cent average capacity. But this year only 2-3 films have been able to do this feat. Therefore, if we talk about the price of tickets forever, then it is not possible to do so by incurring huge losses. It is not always possible to reach 90 or 100 percent of the cinema halls on the occasion of National Cinema Day. However, a dynamic model can be adopted whereby cinema halls can make more or less of their tickets based on demand and supply like airlines.
‘Cinema is not always full’
However, if you are thinking that cinema halls have been at a disadvantage due to this cheap ticketing initiative, then it is not entirely correct. You will be surprised to know that the cinema business in India is dependent on the sale of popcorn and other food items in restaurants instead of cinema tickets for earning. Therefore, on National Cinema Day, only the prices of cinema tickets were reduced in cinemas, but the prices of food items remained the same. Regarding the profit or loss caused to cinema halls due to National Cinema Day, Yogesh says, “Usually against 35-40 per cent of the audience, we got 100 per cent on Cinema Day and we sold cinema tickets at one-third of the average ticket rate.” So we shouldn’t have to suffer that much. The rest we are looking at it as a long term investment, under which the audiences who have not been to the cinema for a long time are motivated to come to the cinema.
‘That’s why theaters in the South are chock-full’
On the other hand, producer and film business analyst Girish says about the demand of cinema audience to reduce the ticket prices forever, “Today even though you are seeing 100 percent audience in cinemas due to cheap tickets, but this trend does not last forever.” Can stay Fewer people are able to find time to go to the cinema on weekdays than on weekends. So till now more work needs to be done on how much the cinema halls can reduce the price of tickets so that they also do not suffer and the audience also gets relief. When we asked Girish, why can’t we adopt a low cost and high audience model in South Cinema? In response, he says, ‘The audience of South treats their stars like God. That’s why the theaters there are chock full. But here people go to the cinema for big stars only on weekends, whereas not many people go to the cinema even on weekdays.
Source: navbharattimes.indiatimes.com
: Language Inputs
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