How is Kollywood dealing with the coronavirus outbreak in India?

As the COVID-19 scare begins to stall movie businesses across the country, let's take a look at the situation in the Tamil film industry

‘Master’ is slated to release on April 9

Is the film industry equipped to deal with the COVID-19 outbreak? Because, there seems to be a decline in terms of collection during weekdays. Tiger Shroff’s action-packed Baaghi 3 opened well across the country and has grossed ₹53.83 crore in its opening weekend. However, the trade feels that the movie could have performed much better if not for the Coronavirus fear. Closer home, the Tamil romantic-drama Kannum Kannum Kollaiyadithaal grossed over ₹9 cr in 10 days, which is huge by any yardstick.

Market pressure

Hollywood took a hit because of the Coronavirus threat in countries like North America, South Korea, Japan, Europe and China. In fact, the much-awaited James Bond movie

No Time To Die , which was scheduled for release on April 2, has been pushed to November.

Peter Rabbit 2 is another movie to be postponed. Marvel’s

Black Widow , however, will release as per its original plan on April 30. Meanwhile, the Malayalam industry has locked down theatres till March 31 as per the State Government’s request.

Reports suggest that some Hindi films might get postponed, as tweeted by well-known trade analyst Taran Adarsh.

He wrote, “Rescheduling release dates of some forthcoming Hindi films is on the cards. With Coronavirus spreading far and wide, not just India theatrical business, the overseas theatrical business is also gradually turning cold.” The coming days are going to be crucial for the movie industry’s business. Speaking about this issue, Kamal Gianchandani, CEO of PVR Pictures, says, “We have been watching the box office trend for

Baaghi 3 and other films. So far, there has not been a noticeable impact as box-office figures are concerned. It’s understandable that the producers would want to reassess their release strategy. However, the fact remains that not a single Indian film has been delayed.”

In Kollywood, meanwhile, four big ‘summer’ films are scheduled for release starting from Easter-Tamil New Year (April 9 weekend) to May Day (May 1 weekend). These movies are Vijay’s

Master , Suriya’s

Soorarai Pottru , Dhanush’s

Jagame Thandhiram and Jayam Ravi’s

Bhoomi . As per trade sources, all four movies are likely to release as per plan, though there are concerns of its release, in the overseas markets and neighbouring states. At the same time, the producers of

Master have shifted the venue for the audio launch, which was supposed to be held at Nehru Stadium. The function will now be held at a star hotel with select guests on March 15.

Master is slated for release on April 9, but the producers will finalise the release date after the censor process.

What’s the scene?

The overseas market will pose a challenge for Tamil cinema’s business, especially in key markets like Singapore, West Asia, Europe and the US. Filmmakers have largely avoided shooting abroad, except Vikram’s Cobra , which is currently being shot in Russia’s Baltic region. Ajith Kumar’s Valimai , which had planned to can a high-octane action scene in Spain in April, has postponed the shoot. Kollywood’s ‘location guru’, Ramji, who arranges film shootings in foreign locations, says, “Today, nobody wants to travel by flights. Coronavirus has crippled the industry and the budget has gone awry considering the various expenses for shoots abroad. I hope the situation improves as summer is the best season to shoot.”

What are some of the precautionary measures taken by Tamil filmmakers? Currently shooting for his next movie with Arivazhagan in Agra, actor Arun Vijay says, “We are shooting an intense action scene in and around Taj Mahal. We are taking all measures to ensure that the crew is wearing masks and using hand sanitisers. We cannot cancel the shoot since it’s very difficult to get permission to shoot in Agra.”

Producer G Dhananjayan, on the other hand, feels it is better to stick to Chennai, in such times. He says, “Coronavirus is certainly creating a panic in Tamil cinema. The industry hopes that the virus does not spread in the State, as it might affect footfalls.”

Distributors are monitoring the scenario on a daily basis, hoping that the situation does not get any worse. Meanwhile, the Tamil Film Distributors Association has asked the Central Government to withdraw the proposed TDS to be levied on their income and the State Government to scrap local body entertainment tax. If they are not withdrawn, T Rajendran, president (Chennai-Thiruvallur-Kanchipuram association), has stated that Tamil films would not release from March 27.