Unmanned workstations and an eerie silence at Chennai-based Qube Cinema Technologies make for a grim reminder that movies just aren’t being made these days. The digital film distributor spent the last 14 months slashing its workforce by 35 percent. Revenues have fallen to just 15 to 20 percent of a normal year, and the company’s losses have crossed Rs 100 crore. Qube says it might have to cut costs further to stay afloat.

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“We certainly won’t be doing any more headcount reductions since we are at a very efficient size and certainly cannot reduce manpower anymore,” says Senthil Kumar, Co-Founder, Qube, “But we may conduct small pay deferments and implement other measures to conserve cash in case the problem persists for longer than we anticipate.

The problem that Senthil refers to is the fact that film distributors like Qube have stopped making money on in-theatre ads and screenings since the multiplex has forced multiplexes to down shutters for the second time in a year. In fact, every aspect of the film industry — from production to distribution and exhibition — has taken a beating.

Producers could cannibalize each other’s earnings

Sample this: an average year in Kollywood sees about 200 Tamil film releases. Given that theatres in Chennai being allowed to function for only four out of the last fourteen months, barely thirty films made it to the big screen. Interestingly, film producers will find themselves in a unique fix when multiplexes eventually re-open and multiple films release together.

“Everyone will want to have a release; everybody is frustrated already since their interest rates are mounting,” says S R Prabhu, Vice President of the Tamil Film Active Producers’ Council, “They (producers) will want to come out of this scenario. So, everybody will eye a single date, and revenues will get split.”

To avoid this cannibalization and possible feeding off each other’s box-office earnings, some film producers took the OTT plunge. Movies like the Salman Khan starrer, Radhe, and Sardar Ka Grandson featuring Arjun Kapoor, which were eyeing a big-screen release, have already made it to Zee 5 and Netflix, respectively.

Saif Ali Khan starrer Bunty Aur Babli 2, Chehre featuring Amitabh Bachchan and Satyameva Jayate 2 with John Abraham in the lead, are stuck in limbo, after seeing big-screen release dates already postponed.

Multiplexes stay positive

The OTT factor aside, just the fact that there are films awaiting a big-screen release has multiplexes confident that they will do good business in the second half of FY 22.

“At last count, there were 40 to 50 Hindi films to be released, an equal number of films in Indian regional languages and another 20 to 25 Hollywood films,” says Inox CEO Alok Tandon, “The pipeline looks mouth-watering, and once restrictions are lifted, producers and distributors will need some time to market these movies, and after that there will be a steady flow.”

Irrespective of the trials and tribulations that filmmakers, multiplexes and distributors face, if there’s one winner here, it has to be the film-goer. For when multiplexes keep their date with the reopening, audiences are bound to be spoiled for choice.