Last week, Kamal Haasan fans got a chance to catch their idol on screen following the re-release of his 1989 film Vetri Vizha after being digitally restored.
The movie, directed by Prathap K Pothan, joins a list of popular Tamil movies in the last 10 years that have enjoyed a second run in the cinemas after producers and distributors have stepped in to convert the movie prints into digital format.
“I’ve been a Kamal Haasan fan for the last 10 years and it was an exciting experience for me to see the movie on screen,” said S. Sairam. The 20-year-old student said that he had previously seen the movie on television.
The movie was screened in most multiplexes in the city for about a week and was taken off from most screens to make space for the new releases on Friday, August 11.
“Many movies that are being digitised are not enjoying too long a run at the theatres here as they have already been screened multiple times on television and on HD channels. Added to this, unless there is a lot of patronage, it is impossible to keep these movies in theatres as there are many new Tamil releases vying for space on screens,” noted G. Dhananjayan, Founder and Dean, BOFTA Film Institute.
Karnan , epic mythological film starring Sivaji Ganesan, which released in 1964, was digitised and re-released in 72 theatres across the State in 2012.
Publicity is the key
G. Chokkalingam, Managing Partner of Divya Films, which digitised and re-released Karnan and the MGR-starrer Aayirathil Oruvan, stressed the importance of marketing a film even during its re-release.
“For Karnan , we designed our print publicity on a par with the top new movie releases that year. While we undertake digitisation, it takes time for theatre owners to consider the content and agree to give us screens for the re-release as well,” he explained.
The movie enjoyed a run of around 155 days and Mr. Chokkalingam said that it took around ₹40 lakh to re-release it.
“While I decided to digitise and release the film again solely because I am a huge fan of Sivaji Ganesan and the movie, I wanted the audience too to experience the film in the best theatres and large screens with the latest technology. A lot of youngsters who were curious about the film went to the theatres to see it and this contributed to its long run,” he said.
Other hits
Baasha , Suryagandhi and Adimai Penn are among the old films which have been re-released in a digital format in the last few years.
Pointing out that it was important to chose films that would evoke curiosity among the current generation, Shylaja Chetlur from movie club Cinema Rendezvous said that it was the older movies such as Chandralekha , released in 1948, that evoked curiosity among youngsters for its drum-dance sequence.
“The re-release of the films should also be done in a timely manner,” she said.
