Successful Hindi Films And How We Stopped Having A Repeat Audience

The business of Hindi films in India has increased exponentially in the last few years. Every third month we are having a Hindi film which is generating revenue more than 80 Cr Nett, a figure unheard of, even 10 years back.

While dissecting the collection pattern of the hits, superhits and blockbusters in the last few years, one very interesting observation can be made. Most films, even though successful, are not finding repeat audience. However, this particular scenario is applicable primarily to big-budgeted films. Limited budget/indie films, irrespective of quality, face many hurdles. Most of them are not promoted at all and released in very few theaters, with the hope that the film if good, will grow on word of mouth. In such cases, it becomes very difficult to club their collection pattern with big-budget films.

Now, how do we define repeat audience through box office collections? When any big-budget film releases, how much it sustains in its second, third and subsequent weeks is directly proportional to its repeat audience.

The collection of a film normally falls by 40-45% from Week 1 to Week 2 if it sustains well. In case there is another big-budget film releasing the next week, the collection falls 50-60%. By the end of its theatrical run, if a film has sustained well, it will atleast double its first week collection if not more.

Is that the case in the last few years? Let us take a look.

The most successful film in terms of revenue generated in Hindi cinema is 3 Idiots. The Nett collection for the film is 202.57 Cr. It collected 79.05 Cr in Week 1. So the film made 2.56 times the opening week collection. Now, let us take a look at the collection of different weeks. Week 1 collected 79.05 Cr, Week 2 collected 56.24 Cr and Week 3 was 30.30 Cr. So the collections dropped by only 28.8% from Week 1 to Week 2 and 46.1% from Week 2 to Week 3, which clearly indicates the repeat audience.

Let us take another example, Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi. First week collection for the film was 42.19 Cr. The Nett collection for the film after its theatrical run is 86.78 Cr, which is little over 2 times the first week collection. If we analyze the collection by weeks, Week 1 collected 42.19 Cr, Week 2 collected 24.56 Cr and Week 3 was 9.8 Cr. From Week 1 to Week 2, the collections dropped by 41.7% and for Week 2 to Week 3 the collections dropped by 60%. The reason for the larger drop in Week 3 was primarily due to the release of Ghajini.

The third and final example of a film sustaining well is Om Shanti Om. The Nett collection for the film is 79.42 Cr. It collected 36.97 Cr in Week 1. So the film made 2.15 times the opening week collection. Now, let us take a look at the collection of different weeks. Week 1 collected 36.97 Cr, Week 2 collected 22.18 Cr and Week 3 was 10.51 Cr. So the collections dropped by only 40% from Week 1 to Week 2 and 52.6% from Week 2 to Week 3.

Here onwards, the graph goes downward.

First on the list is Ghajini. First week collection for the film was 64.28 Cr. The Nett collection for the film after its theatrical run is 114.67 Cr, which is 1.78 times the first week collection. If we analyze the collection by weeks, Week 1 collected 64.28 Cr, Week 2 collected 26.50 Cr and Week 3 was 14.13 Cr. From Week 1 to Week 2, the collections dropped by 58.8% even though there were no releases in the next two weeks.

The same can be said for Rajneeti too. The Nett collection for the film is 92.93 Cr. It collected 53.91 Cr in Week 1. So the film made just 1.72 times the opening week collection. Now, let us take a look at the collection of different weeks. Week 1 collected 53.91 Cr, Week 2 collected 23.92 Cr and Week 3 was 7.89 Cr. So the collections dropped by 55.6% from Week 1 to Week 2 and 67% from Week 2 to Week 3.

Bodyguard suffered the worst fate. First week collection for the film was 109.47 Cr. The Nett collection for the film after its theatrical run is 140.95 Cr, which is shockingly only 1.28 times the first week collection, clearly indicating the picture.

At the time of this article, Ra.One, another supposedly successful film is going through the same crisis. The Week 1 collection for the movie is 97.47 Cr. The Week 2 collection stands at a shocking low of only 15.27 Cr, a plunge of 84.3%, probably the worst of the decade.

The same story goes on and on for every hit, superhit or blockbuster film in the last years. Dabangg, Golmaal 3, Singham, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, My Name Is Khan, Housefull, Love Aaj Kal… None of them managed to double their first week collection by the end of their theatrical run. In the last 5 years, only 3 successful big-budgeted films collected more than two times their first week total.

Gone are the days of Golden Jubilee and Silver Jubilee. Rarely does a film complete a theatrical run of 50 days. The audience is simply not connecting. A pan-India hit has almost become a myth. It is either a Multiplex success or a Single Screen success, but never both. The reason is simple. We are just not making enough good films.

Producers and distributors keep on shouting that the only business that is now left is the first weekend business. And so, irrespective of the product, good or bad, everyone is going for the kill by over promoting their films till it becomes nauseating. The bubble of the first week business will burst sooner or later. What will the producers do then? And that is one scary thought!