Indian movie fraternity pins hope on Vijay’s Master

‘Thalapathy’ Vijay’s Master, which hits screens tomorrow, has a better goal than merely serving to its producers earn again their funding. It is predicted to carry the gang again to theatres.
“Master is the first big scale, potential blockbuster film releasing after the lockdown. I think if this movie really does well, a lot of producers will be encouraged to start releasing their big films. So at some level, the entire entertainment industry of this country is rooting for Master to do well and heat up the engines of the industry,” mentioned movie exhibitor Akshaye Rathi.
Film distributor Tirupur Subramaniam can also be anticipating a terrific response as Master is popping out on a pageant (Pongal) and it has an enormous star solid.
And if the advance reserving is something to go by, Master is off to an excellent begin. Earlier this week, a whole bunch of younger Vijay followers braved the pandemic and thronged theatres in Chennai to purchase tickets for Master. The visuals from varied theatres confirmed that there was no social distancing, many weren’t even carrying masks, and there was zero worry of the virus. The solely worry they will need to have had could be returning residence with out the tickets.

An enormous crowd of followers try and guide tickets upfront for #Master‘ pic.twitter.com/9U00PWYZkT
— Lokesh (@LokeshJey) January 10, 2021
“Since we are selling only half the tickets, we are all booked until Sunday,” mentioned Rakesh, who manages Vettri Theatres in Chennai’s Chromepet. However, he’s conscious that he shouldn’t get his hopes up simply primarily based on the eagerness of die-hard followers to welcome Master in cinemas. Once the preliminary rush subsides, the household viewers will are available in. So Master’s gross sales subsequent Monday will assist the commerce specialists determine whether or not or not this movie has rekindled public curiosity in visiting cinema halls.
People will admire a superb movie it doesn’t matter what
Rakesh’s knowledgeable warning was contrasted by his conviction that the viewers will come to the theatre, even throughout the pandemic, if the movie is nice. And movie commerce pundits throughout the nation share the identical sentiment.
“Now, the fear about the virus is declining, the spread of the virus is slowing down and the vaccination is coming. And if you give them (people) good content, they will come to theatres. The tradition of watching movies in theatres is not going to go away,” mentioned producer and movie commerce analyst Girish Johar.
Master will open in near 900 screens in Tamil Nadu alone. And the movie can also be set to present Vijay his largest ever opening in different components of the nation as effectively. In Kerala, about 80 per cent of the 600-odd screens will display Master. And the movie has additionally acquired a superb share of screens in Karnataka and Telugu states regardless of some competitors (Ravi Teja’s Krack, Ram Pothineni’s Red).

“The response to the advance booking has been extraordinary. There are demands for extra shows. It will be the biggest opening for Vijay in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. The collection will be massive in the first four days, and all the distributors will make a profit in no time,” Vamsi Kaka, PRO of Master (Telugu) instructed indianexress.com.
Vamsi’s predictions concerning the phenomenal field workplace efficiency of Master was primarily based on the success of Solo Brathuke So Better, which had Sai Dharam Tej within the lead. “It was the first big film in Telugu to be released during the pandemic. It released on December 25 and completed its theatrical run with a total collection of Rs 20 crore,” he mentioned.
And Vijay is a a lot greater deal now in Telugu states. His final three movies — Mersal, Sarkar and Bigil — had been large hits there. Vamsi believes that Vijay’s rising fanbase and the thrill concerning the movie created by the teaser and subsequent promos are sufficient to attract individuals to the theatres.
Not sufficient publicity up north
But the commerce specialists in north Indian markets really feel that Master’s publicity workforce didn’t do sufficient to create consciousness concerning the movie among the many public.
The Hindi dubbed model of Master might do effectively if it receives good phrase of mouth within the coming days. But, commerce pundits really feel it is not going to obtain an enormous opening in north India owing to lack of publicity.
“The problem here is the producer is releasing the film with 50 per cent capacity in theatres. And they don’t want to spend much (on advertising). As an exhibitor/audience, I think they should have done good publicity of the film,” mentioned Nitin Dattar, president of the Cinema Owners and Exhibitors Association of India.
“They have done a half-hearted job. Otherwise, it could have done wonders,” he added.
Vijay Sethupathi performs the antagonist in Master.
Film exhibitor Akshaye Rathi agrees that the makers of Master ought to have carried out a greater job reaching out to the general public in north India. However, he’s additionally optimistic that the repute and familiarity that Vijay Sethupathi enjoys with north Indian film-goers would make up for the sloppy advertising.
“Some of Vijay Sethupathi’s films like Vikram Vedha and others have done really well on satellite and OTT platforms with their dubbed Hindi versions. That ensures there is a degree of familiarity that north Indian audiences have with him. With regard to Vijay, I think it was a matter of time before he was exposed substantially to the north Indian audience. And I am sure he will start getting the same degree of love and hysteria that he gets in Tamil Nadu all over the country,” Akshaye mentioned.
He famous that regardless of lack of sturdy publicity, the advance reserving in tier 1 and tier 2 cities have been very encouraging.
Approximately about 50 per cent of whole screens in north India have reopened after the lockdown. Of which 80 per cent of the screens will display Master from January 14.