Dry spells continue at the Box Office

No one expected the dent to be the size of a crater. With all eyes and ears glued and focused on the two major Christmas releases [ Welcome, Taare Zameen Par ], the pre-release weeks were expected to be thanda, but so thanda?! Looks like the box-office collections are competing with the dipping temperatures!

With an array of interesting names in its cast, Dus Kahaniyaan was expected to fare better of the two releases at multiplexes. The occupancy was expected to be in the range of 60% + at metros and 50% + at mini-metros. But all hopes were punctured as Dus Kahaniyaan had a 15% - 20% start.

Is the failure of episodic movies like Darna Mana Hai, Darna Zaroori Hai, Salaam-e-Ishq and Hattrick responsible for it? Have people written off episodic movies? That's what a section of the industry feels. The sole factor that goes in Dus Kahaniyaan's favor is its more than reasonable pricing, but the business being so low, even the recovery seems like a remote possibility.

Dus Kahaniyaan had its share of advocates and adversaries. Some people liked 5 stories, some went for 6, some voted for 3. The opinions were divided. The word of mouth wasn't outright negative, yet the business never reflected the substantial growth.

If Dus Kahaniyaan was bad business-wise, Khoya Khoya Chand met with a worse fate; the film opened to dismal houses everywhere. The collections were shockingly low from East to West, from North to South.

What's surprising is that Prakash Jha and Sudhir Mishra have their set of loyal audience. Besides, the film was well promoted prior to its release, but the business was so low that it sent shock waves across the industry.

If the metros were bad, the mini-metros were worse. A section of the trade feels that the common man is no longer interested in watching the bygone era. Going by this logic, why were Devdas and more recently, Om Shanti Om so well received? Conversely, if contemporary themes are the driving force, then why do so many films that reflect the current times fizzle out week after week?
Let's not lose hope. The sun is about to set on 2007, but there're four prominent films, made by reputed names all, that should improve the health of the industry. Let's hope for the best!