Mumbai, Superstar Aamir Khan and film producer Dinesh Vijan on Friday said Indian filmmakers should look beyond India while marketing their movies and there is a need to create a distribution channel in different countries.
Aamir attended the session “Studios of the Future: Putting India on the World Studio Map” on the second day of the WAVES summit in Mumbai alongside “Stree” producer Dinesh Vijan, Excel Entertainment’s Ritesh Sidhwani, PVR INOX chief Ajay Bijli, veteran American producer Charles Roven and Mumbai-based VFX firm DNEG CEO Namit Malhotra.
The superstar-producer batted for better distribution network not just in India but also globally.
“As Indian producers, we’ve to spend time creating a distribution channel in different countries, then things will start changing. We haven’t bothered about it,” Aamir said during the session where he also batted for the need to invest in more screens across the country.
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Vijan agreed with Aamir and said “content is king, but distribution is god” in the filmmaking business.
“They have spent time and effort to build an international market. It requires focus and money. So, we need to do that. We don’t have that organised. Like everyone says, content is king, but a very wise man told me distribution is God. So, I don’t think our films reach that far, which we have to work on it,” the producer said.
Roven, known for backing blockbuster franchises like “The Dark Knight” trilogy and “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice”, said Indian filmmakers can learn from Hollywood how to widen their distribution network globally.
“Your business is so inside India, and my business is around the world. The model is completely different. You’ve a lot of independence in a certain kind of way, all of you make movies for content, and you decide how you are going to exhibit it, sometimes as you are finishing them or after you finish them,” Roven said.
But unlike India, the producers in the West make the decision whether a particular movie will be released in theatres or on streaming even before they start the production.
“I rarely make something where I’m going to decide how I’m going to exhibit. But everything I do starts with the intention that ‘I want to show it around the world’, I don’t think that’s where you guys come from,” Roven said.
Aamir interrupted and said, “No, we don’t, you’re absolutely right.”
Roven responded, saying, “What is great about this whole event in my humble opinion is that, ‘You should be looking at the world and figure it out.”
Aamir agreed with Roven’s perspective and said that while Indian filmmakers often prioritise content driven by the local audience, a shift towards a global outlook is needed.
“The decision to make a film is rarely connected to its distribution, it’s the material that excites me, then I want to make that. It’s not that this film has potential in China, because with great difficulty, I understand what is working in India, what’s working in China, but I don’t understand.
“But he is so right, his observation that we make films for our market, and we don’t think of an international audience. We’ve a large and healthy audience in different languages, and each language has a strong and vibrant audience. I feel the more local you are in your content, the more global you’re naturally.”
PVR INOX chief Ajay Bijli hailed the impressive commercial success of Indian films in theatres, and said there’s a need for more “feast” moments.
“We’ve had seven films doing Rs. 500 crore business, so the demand is still insatiable. Pre-COVID-19, there was only one movie that did above Rs. 500 crore business. So, what’s happening is we’ve had a feast and famine situation, like you’ve a feast and then you’ve a jackpot, and suddenly there’s a complete famine,” Bijli said.
Sidhwani said today streaming platforms are taking Indian content outside the diaspora.
“Streaming platform gave me the opportunity to tell different kinds of content, you’ve an audience there who is not watching broadcast TV but is consuming content from around the world.
“So, that gave birth to a lot of new talent behind the camera, the writer’s room was set up, and there was a technical crew coming on board. The format is different where the series is concerned. People have discovered Indian content. If an Indian film goes outside the diaspora, the western audience is aware because your content is available in 200 countries,” he said.
Malhotra, who is producing filmmaker Nitesh Tiwari’s upcoming “Ramayana” movie featuring Ranbir Kapoor, said the project is meant for both India and the world.
“We are garnishing the right mix of talent, technology, and the way we want to go about it is to make it local in the world,” he added.
Held at the Jio World Convention Centre, WAVES is billed as the biggest gathering of the media and entertainment industry. It is aimed at giving a boost to the creator’s economy taking shape across the world, integrating sectors like films, OTT, gaming, comics, digital media, AI, AVGC-XR, broadcasting and emerging tech.
